It Never Gets Any Easier
by MaybeMayba
Summary: The adventure at the Department of Mysteries turns into an absolute disaster. When it looks like it is the end for Harry, an unexpected event makes Harry's life even more complicated than it was before. One thing is for certain, his life does not get any easier... On long term hiatus - please see the latest update.
1. Chapter 1

_Shit, shit, shit! What is wrong with me, always charging ahead like I have some type of death wish…maybe I do. It would certainly explain part of the reason my life is so fucked up, and this stupid prophecy I'm holding would certainly explain the rest. The one time I should have listened to Hermione is the one time that I didn't. Where the hell is Sirius! I've led my friends to certain death looking for the mutt and he's not even hear! Idiots, following me here like I'm some bloody hero. Stupid, stupid, stupid! I need to come up with a plan for once in my life. Then again, it would be so much easier to think and come up with a plan if I wasn't living in a constant world of pain thanks to my favorite scar. If anyone is going to make it out of here alive, I need time to come up with a plan…_

* * *

"Neville!" Harry shouted over the rain of spell fire coming from the Death Eaters. "We need to regroup and come up with a plan if we want to make it out of here alive!"

"I hear ya mate! Would you like me to go ask Bellatrix and Lucius for a tactical timeout?" Neville retorted.

"Oh shut up, you know what I meant you git."

"Yah well, I thought it'd be nice to have one last laugh before Bellatrix completes the set and drives me into insanity as well."

Harry just shook his head at his mate's dark humour, before grabbing his arm and dragging him back. "Everyone drop back! We all need to get to the main room again," Harry shouted to his friends as he and Neville ran to the nearest door. They burst through the door just as a cutting curse and a curse Harry couldn't identify burst overhead.

"You alright Nev?" Harry asked as he shut the door and locked it with the most complex locking charms he knew.

"Never better," Neville dryly returned. "Other than the fact that my dad's old wand is broken, and the only thing I have left to defend myself from my parents' attackers is my bare hands."

"Well, let's hope it won't come down to that eh," Harry responded with a crooked grin, in the hopes to lighten the mood slightly. "We better get moving, try and find that circular room and meet up with everyone else." Harry and Neville then started to move their way through different dark and weird rooms until they finally stumbled upon the first room the group entered in the Department of Mysteries.

"Merlin I hate this place," growled Neville. "No wonder Uncle Algie loved working here, the man was an evil git."

"Sounds like a lovely man," Harry said while chuckling to himself. "I'd like an introduction if we make it out of here alive…Hermione?" As Harry finished speaking, he looked up to find a crying Hermione and a dazed Ron in the center of the circular room.

"They're…they're dead…" Hermione choked out. "How is this possible, they were right there… and now they're gone forever." Harry felt as if someone had attached an anchor to his stomach and thrown him in the ocean, as the possibilities of what Hermione just said registered within him.

"Hermione what do you mean, who's dead?" Harry cried out, he did not need to be a seer in order to know what was coming next.

"G-G-G-inny…a-a-and Luna," she managed to squeeze out just before breaking down into uncontrollable sobs. Harry was initially stunned, not knowing what to say or do. That was until he was hit with the realization that if he wanted to prevent more of his friends from dying, then they needed to get moving.

"Hermione," Harry gently said as he kneeled down in front of her, "we need to move now, before it is one of us that they cut down next." Harry took Hermione's face in his hands and lifted her chin in order to look into her eyes, but what he saw almost made him jump back in shock. Behind the tear stained eyes and misery, there was a deep underlying anger and resentment…and it was directed at him.

Harry wasn't the only one to notice this as Neville finally spoke out, "Don't you dare! Don't you dare blame this on Harry! If it is anybody's fault for them getting killed by the Death Eaters, it is their own. Hell, Harry told us not to come, and it was our own damn choice to follow him. So don't you dare try to blame our own stupid choices on Harry!"

There was a swell of pride that Harry felt at the words of his formerly timid friend. Over the past year Neville had grown into one of his closest friends, and to hear Neville stand up for him like that made Harry question why it was not Neville by his side from the very beginning.

This moment was cut short, as footsteps and yelling from the Death Eaters could be heard from the adjacent rooms. The mad cackling of Bellatrix Lestrange sent a chill down Harry's spine, and reminded him why he wanted to get the hell out of there as soon as possible. Based off of the sound of their voices Harry guessed that they had about a minute before the Death Eaters caught up to them. "Time damn it!" Harry shouted to nobody in particular. "We need some more time!"

Suddenly the doors around the room started to whirl around before stopping on a door with a small hourglass engraved onto it. "Let's move!" Harry shouted, pushing Neville and Hermione forward towards the newly appeared door. Just as they reached the door, another door across the room burst open and revealed the terrifying figure of Bellatrix Lestrange. But what made the situation even worse was the fact that Ron did not follow them across the room. In fact, Ron was still in the catatonic state that Harry and Neville had found him in when they first entered the room.

"Ickle wittle Potty is still running away from sweet little Bella," cooed Lestrange in a voice that could shatter glass and taint even the purest of souls. "Looky here, Potty's best friend wittle Weasle wants to play," Bellatrix said as she prowled over to Ron, who continued to stare unblinking out into the distance. "Wittle Ronny watched as sweet Bella played with wittle Weaslette, and she was so much fun!" whispered Bellatrix as she caressed Ron's cheek with her corpse like hand. "It's too bad wittle Bella can't have the same fun with Ronny, because Bella really needs to get that prophecy from ickle wittle Potty," she said as she pulled out a dagger between her breasts. Slowly she walked up to the still unaware Ron and slit his throat without ever breaking eye contact with Harry.

Harry did not look away as Ron fell to the ground and started to bleed out, because he felt that he owed his best mate that much respect. Harry then turned and ran back to the new door as Bellatrix started to giggle and skip around the fallen body of Ron. It was at this moment that Harry felt a fire light up deep inside of himself. A power that he had only ever felt once before, when he saved himself and Sirius from the horde of Dementors at the end of his third year.

Harry burst through the door into the new room with silent tears streaking down his face, and the looks he received from both Hermione and Neville told him that they knew what he had just witnessed. As Harry started to look around the room he understood why there was the small hourglass on the door, as it was the time room. Time turners lined the walls and other unique looking objects where filled with the sands of time as well. "There's no exit door," Neville spoke up suddenly.

"Are you sure?" Harry replied.

"Wouldn't be sitting here if there was mate," Neville said with a sad smile.

"Alright," Harry said with a heavy sigh. "We all need to find a place to bunker down and wait. We hold our fire when they enter the room and try to draw them in, once we have a clear shot for the door we keep them on the defensive while we make a break for it."

"Sounds like the best plan we got," Neville answered while Hermione gave a small nod.

Five minutes later with Neville, Hermione and Harry hidden behind some of the tables and boxes, the door opened and six Death Eaters slowly entered the room. "Potter," the lead Death Eater drawled. "We truly are sorry for what happened to your ever faithful companions. Especially since all three were purebloods, despite the fact they were blood traitors. But that could have easily been remedied, and it is always a tragedy when superior blood is lost."

"Now!" Harry shouted as five of the Death Eaters passed their hiding spot. Harry and Hermione started throwing blasting curses at the Death Eaters trying to catch them off guard. However, the inner circle was feared for a reason, as they all easily deflected the curses into the walls lined with time turners. The Death Eaters returned fire with vicious curses, the likes of which Harry had only seen come from Voldemort before. The three friends defended each other to the best of their abilities, but it was obvious that it would not be enough.

Just as Harry dodged a sickening yellow curse he did not recognize, he returned a cutting curse that caught one of the Death Eaters in the face. The mask fell off revealing a livid Dolohov who spun around and sent a purplish black curse right at Hermione. It came too quick for any of them to react and it caught Hermione right in the chest. She flew across the room into a large cupboard against the wall and lay there unmoving with a hole the size of a quaffle in her chest.

The fire within Harry intensified at the sight of his mangled best friend, and the power within him felt like a volcano ready to erupt. With this, Harry's eyes quickly darted towards Dolohov before he sent the strongest cutting curse he could at him. Dolohov was expecting this and put up his most powerful shield, but the power behind Harry's curse simply shattered the shield; and the surprise in Dolohov's eyes faded as the curse cut through him like a knife through butter.

"Enough!" shouted Lucius as he took in the destruction of the room. "Hand over the prophecy before you have no friends left," Malfoy sneered as he nodded his head across the room.

Harry shifted his gaze to see Neville with an obviously broken leg struggling to stand.

" _Crucio_!" Bellatrix screamed as Neville began to writhe across the ground in pain.

"That would be unwise," Lucius warned Harry as he began to take aim at Bellatrix.

"Just like your father eh," laughed Rabastan Lestrange. "Thinking that not screaming makes you tough. Let me tell you something Longbottom, your father was the biggest bitch I've ever met. Crying and praying out that somebody would come save his precious Alice and little Neville."

"You fucking cunt!" Neville roared, as he picked up Hermione's fallen wand sending a blasting curse at Rabastan with the remaining magic Neville had left in himself. The curse soared through the air catching Rabastan on the chin exploding his head outwards, all over his fellow Death Eaters.

Harry looked at the shocked Death Eaters who were now covered in Rabastan's brain matter, and had to fight back a laugh at their stupefied looks. He then glanced at Rodolphus who looked simply murderous, but when he looked over at Bellatrix he was surprised. Instead of mimicking her husband's murderous look, she simply looked indifferent while her eyes seemed to gain a certain clarity that was not there before.

"You little fucking shit!" screamed Rodolphus. "You killed my brother Longbottom!" continued Rodolphus as he sent a decapitation curse at Neville.

As Neville's head slowly rolled away from his body, Harry caught the satisfied smirk that Neville had died with.

With the death of his god brother, Harry erupted. His body felt like he was in the center of an inferno, and his magic was leaking out of him and rolling throughout the room. Harry had never felt more powerful in his life, and the feeling was intoxicating. His blazing green eyes snapped open to find the remaining Death Eaters staring at him with awe and fear in their eyes. Throughout his mind Harry played the images of his fallen friends, and with that he unleashed hell.

He sent multiple blasting hexes at the Death Eaters forcing them all to shield together in order to block the sheer power behind his spells. Harry then sent a banishing charm at Rockwood that sent him flying into the wall with a sickening splat. He then focused on keeping the remaining three Death Eaters back, before he snuck in a cutting curse on Lucius. Lucius fell to the floor due to his now missing foot, and Harry followed up by lighting him on fire.

While his screams filled the time room Harry stalked towards the husband and wife duo that remained. He sent an explosive hex at the floor causing them both to go flying back against the wall, and following it up with _incarcerous_. Harry then sent his own decapitation curse at Rodolphus, but it was in a place much lower and where the sun doesn't shine. As he looked down at the pathetic form of Rodolphus Lestrange, the raging inferno within him reached its peak and Harry released all of his pent up fury at the man. There was nothing left of the man after Harry's blasting hex hit him, however there was also nothing left of Harry's wand. All that remained was the golden feather of Fawkes sitting in his hand, as the pure magic of Harry's fury disintegrated the rest of his holly wand.

"Harry…" a weak voice called from across the room. Harry froze at the sound of the voice not knowing who it could be. "Harry you must leave, he is coming…" Harry spun around as the voice spoke again, but was shocked by what he saw.

Standing there across the room was Bellatrix Lestrange, but not as he remembered her. Gone was the insane look in her cloudy grey eyes, as it was now replaced with a look of compassion and fear in a pair of the most striking violet eyes he had ever seen. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Harry's hormonal teenage self could not stop thinking of the glimpse that he just received of the legendary beauty of the Black sisters.

"Yes he is coming Harry Potter," a shrill voice floated through their heads. "He is very impressed with the power that you have displayed. Killing my inner circle members with such efficiency is something I never thought to be possible. Perhaps you are a threat to me after all…"

"Hello Tom," retorted Harry. "I would say that I missed you, but I don't think anybody has ever honestly thought that in their life, not even you most faithful."

"Ah such a sharp tongue, just like your father," Voldemort mocked as he faded into view out of the darkness. "Bellatrix, I think it is time you stand by your master again. After all, I am about to accomplish my greatest triumph by ending the life of little Harry once and for all."

"You are not my master!" Bellatrix spat, as she seemed revolted at just the thought of it.

"It seems that your usefulness has finally come to an end, such a shame as you truly were one of my best," intoned Voldemort. With those final words, Voldemort sent a silent piercing hex right at her heart killing her instantly. "Well it seems we have come to the end of our little journey young Potter," Voldemort said as if he was speaking to a friend. "However time is short and I do not wish to run into the old fool today. _Avada Kedavra_!"

As the unforgivable shot towards Harry, time seemed to slow down. The sands of time that surrounded Harry seemed to swirl around him and the approaching spell, until finally they connected. The last thing Harry remembered before falling into darkness was a tornado of sand that seemed to engulf him and a terrifying high pitched scream.


	2. Chapter 2

Harry was floating in darkness for what felt like years, but it really could have been only a couple of seconds, before a blinding bright light started to shine through the darkness. He started to regain feeling in his fingers first, then his arms and legs, before finally he was able to open his eyes.

Once his eyes opened, the blinding light vanished and he found himself sitting in a very modern looking office. He saw a large oak desk with two very comfortable chairs in front of it, and directly across from that, he saw a large stone fireplace. The walls were lined with bookshelves that were completey filled with books of different sizes, languages, and topics. To top off the room, there looked to be some very expensive muggle art tastefully placed around the room. Once Harry realized that he was lying down on a couch it all clicked into place, "Why am I sitting in a muggle psychiatrist office?"

"Ah, well I thought this would be the best venue for us to talk about how ridiculously fucked up your life has been so far," giggled a melodic voice behind Harry.

Harry spun his head around and found arguably the most beautiful woman he had ever seen standing in the doorway. She wore a very tight dress with a muggle blouse and blazer on top, which showcased her amazing legs and other assets. She had silky black hair that ran past her shoulders and piercing silver eyes that seemed to cut right through his soul.

"Well… Fleur has nothing on you," Harry whispered under his breath.

"You are not so bad on the eyes either Peverell," the girl giggled back.

"Wait, ummm…Peverell?"

"Yes, I believe that is what I called you," she responded with a small grin.

"My name is Harry Potter."

"Nice to meet you," she responded with a small curtsy, "I am death."

" _Death_!?" Harry gasped. "Well…I appreciate your psychiatrist joke, but I'm starting to think that I am actually going to need one. So if you don't mind I think I am going to stay on this couch. Not to mention it is pretty damn comfy," Harry responded with a crooked grin.

"Well aren't those the best type of jokes, funny but true at the same time?"

"That they are Lady Death," Harry chuckled to himself.

"Let us get down to business Peverell," she said as she gracefully moved across the room and sat behind the large oak desk. "I assume you would like to know what Life has decided to throw at you this time?"

"Yah well life is a bitch," Harry said dryly.

"You don't even know the least of it, try growing up with her," Death said with a cute little frown.

"Your sister?"

"Unfortunately, but she's not the worst one in my family."

"Really, now who would that be?"

"That would be Fate. She is about the most annoying cousin one could ever ask for. Unluckily for you, they both seem to have some obsession with you Peverell."

"Well if they are both as beautiful as you, then I'd say I am more lucky than unlucky," Harry said trying to make himself feel slightly less uncomfortable.

"Charming as always," giggled Death. "However, I'd say you are more unlucky than lucky. Fate is the one that keeps throwing these yearly challenges your way, and Life is the one who keeps you alive, so you can get back up only to be knocked back down again."

"Wow! I guess they really are bitches," Harry said as that was the only thing that came to mind.

"That they are Peverell, that they are," sighed Death. "If not for them, you would have been in my tender embrace a long time ago," she added with a wink.

"So what did Fate want with me?" Harry asked while fighting down a blush.

"Just some rubbish about that prophecy you had," answered Death.

"What did it say?"

"It does not matter anymore, but to make a long story short only you could have defeated the Dark Lord."

"And how was I supposed to do that?" Harry laughed incredulously.

"With this," Death said as she pulled out a bleeding fetus that looked eerily similar to Voldemort. "This was the power the Dark Lord knew not."

"Aiiiiiieee!" Harry screamed, hitting an octave he never knew was possible. "What in the name of Merlin is _that_!?"

"This is the source of all your pain these past few years," Death replied. "This is a horcrux, and it has been living behind that badass scar of yours all these years."

"W-w-w-what's a horcrux?" Harry managed to stammer out.

"Well…it is a piece of Voldemort's soul that he ripped apart, and it accidently found its way in your scar when he couldn't kill you the first time."

"So a piece of Tom was living inside my head since I was a year old?"

"Yup!" responded Death, popping the p at the end.

Harry was speechless and was very glad that he was lying down on the coach, because if he wasn't he probably would have fainted and fallen over by now. "What do you mean by accidentally put it in my scar?" Harry asked trying to get back on track.

"Accidentally, because he did not want to put his soul in you. He wanted to make another Horcrux after he killed you, to further his immortality," Death spat out in disgust. "Bloody idiot thinks he can get away from me. I'll show him…" Death mumbled out with an evil looking grin.

"Wait! Immortality!? He made more than one!?" Harry yelled out.

"Yes, the bloody wanker can't be killed until all the horcruxes are gone, and he made seven of them," answered Death.

"Can you tell me what they are and where?"

"As much as I would _love_ to, I can't. Fate would be one angry girl, and I don't want to deal with her when she is angry. I _can_ tell you that the one in you is gone, one of them was recently made, and one you already destroyed in the past." Death responded with a small smirk.

Harry sat there and thought logically for a second, and deduced that the one he already destroyed most likely was the diary. While the one he made most recently would probably be something that is always near him…like the snake! "The diary, and Nagini?" Harry asked hopefully.

"I can neither confirm nor deny," Death said with a wink.

"You were speaking to me like Life and Fate still have plans for me," Harry stated.

"That they do Peverell, that they do," she smiled sadly.

"How is that even possible?"

"It all goes back to that horcrux in your forehead. When Riddle hit you with the killing curse that last time, it killed a soul like it was supposed to…but it killed his soul piece rather than you."

"So I'll be going back?" Harry asked hopefully.

"Yes, you will definitely be going back. But because of the extravagant way in which you went out, you might be going back quite a bit farther than you might think." After seeing his blank look Death continued, "due to the power behind the killing curse it activated the sands of time that was so conveniently surrounding you when you got hit."

"So I'm going back in time…?" Harry slowly asked almost as if he was afraid of the answer he would get.

"Bingo! You will be heading back to the summer of 1975 to be precise, where your adventure will continue," Death answered with a giggle. "And before you ask, your old world is officially gone. So you no longer have to worry about altering the timeline."

"This sounds more like a second chance at life," Harry said with a smile.

"Well…you could look at it like that. But, you still will have the prophecy hanging over your head," Death added sadly.

"What!?" Harry exclaimed. "I thought it wouldn't apply to me anymore?"

"Like I said Fate is a bitch," replied Death. "She will take it upon herself to come up with a new prophecy that will once again apply to you."

"Fuck." Harry stated. "Why?"

"Because you have the power that he knows not," she said simply.

"Which would be?"

"You are a Peverell."

"Yes, I gathered that already. What exactly does that entail?"

"Well, the Peverell's were a very ancient, noble and powerful family that came from the times of Merlin and Morganna, they actually were quite good friends with them if I remember correctly," she said with a look of reminiscence of her face. "The real power comes from three of your ancestors: Antioch, Cadmus, and Ignotus." An evil smirk then crossed Death's face as she added, "Antioch and Cadmus _sadly_ died before they could have their own children, but Ignotus managed to continue the line. That is until it was married and absorbed into the Potter line."

"Okay, that is actually pretty interesting," Harry said, enjoying actually hearing something about his family for once. "But that would mean all Potters are Peverell's so what is so special about me?"

"Ah, you are special because you are the first real Peverell since the three brothers. You are The Peverell, his blood runs in your veins."

"I'm sorry, I did not know that death was a Buddhist," Harry said sarcastically. "Are you telling me I am the reincarnation of Ignotus?"

"Reincarnation? No. Buddhist? No, that would be my cousin Destiny," Death said while trying to control her giggles. "I would say you are more of an improved version of Ignotus, which is the best compliment I can give seeing as he was quite the specimen," Death added with a lust filled gaze at Harry.

"I don't understand; I have never been very powerful or skilled in magic before, how can I be an improved version of Ignotus?" Harry asked trying to avoid direct eye contact with Death.

"That would be the by-product of your magic being leeched off by the soul piece in your head, while the rest of your magic was fighting it off preventing it from taking over your body," explained Death. "With the horcrux gone, your magic will be completely yours to control and to do with as you please."

"So will I be as powerful as when I killed all those Death Eaters?" Harry asked hopefully.

"No." Death replied, causing Harry to deflate. "That power you had, was 15 years of leeched off magical energy released in a moment of fury in its purest form, from the horcrux."

"Is that why my wand disintegrated?"

"Yes that would be why. Trust me Peverell, you will have magical power that few could ever come near; however, power is not everything. You must work to control your magic, manipulate it, and have a finesse that even the most famous artists and musicians would envy."

"That sounds more like it," Harry replied with a crooked grin. Harry was very excited at the prospect of his magic being entirely his own for once, and not having to fight himself in order to get the results he desired. He even found that it was much easier to think logically and creatively ever since the soul piece was removed from his scar.

"Well, all I have left are three pieces of advice," Death said breaking the silence. "First, I recommend you head to Gringotts. Second, I recommend you buy _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_. And finally, I recommend you have some fun this time around on your adventure," Death concluded with a smirk.

"Thank you very much Lady Death," Harry said with a little bow. "Hopefully I won't be seeing you around until I am old and wrinkly," he added with a wink and the famous Potter grin spread across his face.

"Just head through the door and you will return Peverell," Death instructed. Just as Harry walked through the open door, Death spoke one last time with a genuine smile on her face, "I will see you soon old friend."

 **AN**

 _ **Seeing as this is the first FanFiction I have ever written, it would be nice to receive some reviews to let me know how you feel about the story. Maybe even some ideas on how to improve the story, or how to improve as a writer as well.**_


	3. Chapter 3

As Harry stepped through the doorway, there was a bright flash of light, and when his vision cleared he found himself standing inside the doorway of _The Leaky Cauldron._ "Wow!" Harry thought to himself. "This definitely goes down as one of the weirdest days of my life, and that is saying something."

"Oy! You're blockin' the doorway kid!" shouted a drunk wizard to Harry's left.

Harry was brought back from his thoughts, mumbled an apology and started moving across the bar. "Sorry to bother you sir," Harry asked the least inebriated wizard he could find, "but could you tell me what day and year it is?"

"You drunk kid? It's August 1st 1975," the man answered with a condescending glare. "Oi Tom! I think this kids been sneaking drinks from the bar!"

Tom looked up from the bar and yelled, "That you James Potter? I jus' kicked you out twenty minutes ago for sneakin' a drink and yer back already. Go on an' get outta here before I set Dorea on ye."

"Yes sir," Harry replied before he quickly ducked out of the bar trying to avoid further confrontation. He quickly tapped the bricks in the correct order and made his way into the alley. Whenever Harry thought about the wonders of the Wizarding World, his first thought always went to when Hagrid brought him to Diagon Alley for the first time. This time was no different, as the sense of wonder that he had as an eleven-year-old child returned once again as he entered the alley. As he made his way through Diagon Alley he could not help but notice that it seemed much busier than it was in the future. "Probably the product of the first war," Harry thought to himself.

Harry eventually approached Gringotts, and the advice given by Death popped back into his mind. _Gringotts, book, have fun…Gringotts, book, have fun_. "Might as well get it over with," Harry thought as he made his way up the stairs to the bank.

"I would like to request an inheritance test," Harry announced as he approached the first open teller.

"As interesting as that sounds, I hardly think it will be worth my while," the goblin responded dismissively.

"Oh I think it will definitely be worth your while," Harry shot back. "Especially if it involves a long forgotten ancient and most noble house."

A sickening smile spread across the goblins face as he finally looked up, before adding, "I do not enjoy being disappointed. Follow me!" Harry then followed the goblin down several hallways before entering a room with a large bowl in the center and an elderly goblin holding an ornate ritual dagger.

"Alright prove your worth to us," croaked the elderly goblin. "As you probably have already been told…we do _not_ enjoy disappointments," he added while nodding towards the rack of goblin weapons on the far wall.

This did not phase Harry at all as he grabbed the dagger, sliced it across his palm and allowed his blood to fall within the bowl. As the magic within his blood reacted with the magic within the bowl; black, red and white sparks started to shoot into the air. This was followed by a piece of parchment which shot out of the bowl and was swiftly caught by the elderly goblin. As he read the paper, the goblin seemed to stiffen slightly while his eyebrows shot up his wrinkly forehead.

"You sir, most definitely are not a disappointment," the goblin said as he finally spoke up. "Call Baldmouth and tell him to come here immediately!" ordered the older goblin to the younger, "He will definitely want to be here for this." The goblin then passed the slip of parchment over to Harry.

 _ **Harry Ignotus James Peverell**_

 _ **Member of The Ancient and Most Noble House of Peverell**_

 _ **A True Peverell**_

"Hmm, I guess death wasn't lying after all," Harry mumbled under his breath.

"Where is he? Where is the boy?" boomed a rather large goblin as he entered the room.

"He is over here Baldmouth," answered the elderly goblin while pointing at Harry.

With a speed that surprised Harry, Baldmouth bounded across the room and grabbed Harry's face in his hands. Slowly he started examining Harry's face, "Hmm, ah yes…it could very well be," mumbled the goblin as his fingers now started to pinch different parts of Harry's face, "there is no doubt about it. This is extraordinary!" Baldmouth concluded as he finally let go of Harry's face and took a step back.

It took Harry a few seconds to recover from that horrifying experience, and he was sure that he would be scarred for life after being touched like _that_ by a goblin. "Should I expect to be manhandled by you every time I meet you?" Harry joked.

"Absolutely not!" Baldmouth responded with a disgusted look on his face, "I try to avoid any sort of contact with humans."

"Well the feeling is mutual," Harry shot back.

"Ah, well you were a special case because I had to be sure," Baldmouth carried on, ignoring Harry's comment. "My family was given the task by Ignotus himself to look after the Peverell vault and it has been passed down from generation to generation until I was given the task," he continued with a bit of pride in his voice. "Of course I never thought that I would be the one to re-open the vault, but here I am and here you are."

"And you grabbed my face because…?"

"It is a way of identifying a Peverell that has been passed down throughout my family to those who are given the task of watching over the vault."

"Well shall we head down Baldmouth," Harry asked trying to get the visit over with as soon as possible.

"Of course," Baldmouth replied as he led Harry towards the carts. "I have taken the liberty of assembling your account information if you would like to take a look," he said as he passed Harry a folder.

 _ **The Ancient and Most Noble House of Peverell Account:**_

 _ **Balance: 268,523 galleons, 372 sickles, 73 knuts**_

 _ **Property: Peverell Manor (currently occupied), Thestral Cottage (vacant)**_

 _ **Heirlooms: Wands of ancestors, Antioch (?), Cadmus (?), Ignotus (?)**_

 _ **Lordships: Lord Peverell (absorbed)**_

"As you can see," shouted Baldmouth over the noise of the travelling cart, "the Peverell family once was quite wealthy. But when the vault was finally sealed the family's remaining money just sat there," he added with a frown at the thought of the wasted opportunity for profit.

"Why was the vault sealed?" Harry asked.

"Ah, well you see, the Peverell family only cared for very few things. Money, power, knowledge, and family," Baldmouth explained while ticking them down with his fingers. "Ignotus gave us very strict orders that if the family were ever absorbed into another, everything could be transferred over to said family, except the vault which was to be its own separate entity. This is why the manor and lordship are not available to you… so no politicking for you."

Harry let out a sigh of relief at that.

"The vault contains all that was thought to be too important to be given to another family, and was left until a true Peverell returned," Baldmouth continued.

"And that is where I come into play," Harry said to himself.

"Yes…ah, here we are," finished Baldmouth as the cart came to a screeching halt.

Harry stumbled out of the cart, never truly getting used to the high speed rides, and started to approach the vault. As he got closer, he saw that the vault itself was at least three times as large as his Potter trust vault, and it was guarded by two massive thestrals that seemed to be carved out of obsidian. In the middle of the vault door there was an image of a thestral mid-flight, with weird looking symbol engraved onto its back, a triangle with a circle and line within it.

"Just put your hand on the door and it should open," stated Baldmouth.

"What do you mean _should_ …?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well it will either open, or those thestrals will likely obliterate you," Baldmouth replied with a sick toothy smile that all goblins seemed to possess.

Slowly Harry approached the door and placed his palm upon it, and felt a prick as the door took a sample of his blood. Moments later the vault unsealed itself and he let go of a breath that he did not remember holding.

As Harry entered the vault he was met with the sight of mounds of neatly stacked galleons on one side of the room, while the other side was lined with book cases filled with ancient looking texts. As Harry walked along the book cases he was shocked to find that many of the texts pertained to Necromancy, Soul Magic, Blood Magic, as well as other aspects of magic which would have made even the book obsessed Hermione turn around and run away.

"Ah, well it seems that the rumours were true," exclaimed Baldmouth, "the Peverell family was rumoured to have an unhealthy fascination with death and anything closely related to it."

Harry remembered that the horcruxes Death spoke about had something to do with soul magic; and started to fill a rucksack he found with various ancient texts, in the hopes to find something about them in there. He also picked up a few books on mind magic, knowing that he would need to learn how to protect his secrets before meeting Dumbledore again.

As Harry continued across the room he felt a small pull on his magic. He followed the pull to the far end of the vault where he found a small desk with three black books, and three wands sitting beside each book.

The three books were labelled: _Antioch, Cadmus,_ and _Ignotus_ respectively; and they each had the same weird symbol on the front of the book just underneath the names. Harry placed each of the books in his rucksack, figuring that they were the journals or notebooks that belonged to the brothers.

As he placed the third book into his rucksack, Harry felt the pull on his magic intensify. He followed the pull to the third wand on the desk, Ignotus' wand to be exact. The wand was a thing of beauty, with a light, almost white color that would catch anybody's eye. Black and silver swirls were found within the wand, and a thestral alongside the strange symbol were both engraved near the hilt.

As Harry picked up the wand, warmth spread throughout his body and the naked feeling he had ever since he returned suddenly disappeared. It felt so right to hold a wand again, but at the same time it felt wrong. Almost as if his magic was calling out for something else within the wand, something that wasn't there.

Harry put the wand in his pocket, knowing that this wand would do for now. As he pulled his hand out of his pocket, he felt something tickle his palm. He closed his hand around whatever it was and pulled it out, and when he looked down he saw a golden phoenix feather. The same feather that he clutched in his hand when his holly wand disintegrated. "Well she did say I wasn't the reincarnation of Ignotus," Harry thought to himself, "maybe adding the phoenix feather to the wand is another example of how I am an improved version of him."

Harry put the feather back in his pocket, grabbed a few bags full of galleons, and tossed them into his rucksack. As he was about to leave the vault, Harry picked up a necklace with the symbol on it and put it around his head before tucking it underneath his shirt.

"Baldmouth I will be giving you full control over investments," Harry said as they were heading to the surface, "just send me an owl with whatever crazy schemes you come up with and I will give you the final approval."

"That sounds satisfactory Peverell," he said with a toothy smile. "Tell me, are you a fan of risks?"

"I would say I am," Harry responded.

"Well then, I think I will enjoy this partnership between us," Baldmouth said looking happier than Harry thought possible for a goblin.

"Well I'll see you around Baldmouth," Harry said with wave as he departed Gringotts.

"Yes, good day to you Peverell," Baldmouth responded with a small bow.

Harry turned off from Gringotts, and began his walk to his next destination: Ollivander's.

 **AN**

 _ **Thank you to those that left reviews, it was nice hearing what people had to say about the story so far. Feel free to leave some more, whether they are nice or mean, they are all equally appreciated.**_


	4. Chapter 4

There was something truly unsettling about Ollivander, and in the times that Harry had met him it never seemed to go away. He seemed to just 'know things,' almost like Luna did, but in a much creepier way. As Harry walked through the front door and the small bell tinkled announcing his arrival, that same feeling came over him again making him feel as if he were completely exposed to the mysterious wand maker.

"Hmmm a very interesting customer today," the man wheezed as he made his way behind the counter. "I see you are not here for a new wand, so what can I do for you?"

"Well-erm…" Harry managed to get out, still not being able to shake the weird feeling Ollivander gave him, "I was wondering if you could, um maybe, add this to my wand," Harry finished holding up the phoenix feather.

"Perhaps…" the man pondered to himself, as he stuck out his hand. Harry placed both the wand and the feather in his outstretched hand, "Yew, 14 inches, and…oh, now that is interesting, the hair of a thestral as the core," Ollivander said to himself while examining the wand.

"A wood that is said to have power of life and death, with the hair of an animal that is associated and only scene with death," the man continued as he eyed the phoenix feather, "and now you ask me to add the feather of a bird with the power of rebirth and associated with life…" the man trailed off as he seemed to think about the request.

Harry sat there nervously as Ollivander continued to think to himself. Harry started to worry that maybe Ollivander would somehow find out about how Death had sent him back. As sweat started to build at the back of his neck, Harry started to think about how quickly he could grab his wand from the old man and _obliviate_ him. Thankfully it did not come to that, as the wand maker seemed to come to a decision.

"I will be able to complete your request," the man finally said, "however I find myself utterly fascinated with this unique combination for a wand. You must live, or will live, the most interesting of lives young man."

Harry gulped. "Well, umm, thank you sir. Should I wait in the store or will it take a while for the wand to be ready?" Harry asked, wanting to grab his wand and get the hell out of there as soon as possible.

"Your wand should be ready in an hour, usually it would take longer but I find myself quite excited to work with such a unique wand," the man admitted.

"Well I will see you then sir," Harry responded as he turned to leave. "Merlin, that man is a nutcase," Harry muttered to himself when he was finally out of the shop.

Harry quickly made his way throughout Diagon Alley picking up various essentials he needed for the immediate future. These included a standard 3 compartment trunk, some new clothing that actually fit him, a cauldron, potion instruments, and some standard potion ingredients. All of which he had shrunken for him and placed in his rucksack.

As Harry continued down the alley he came across the magical menagerie, and decided to take a quick look inside. Harry walked along the section of owls and saw many that were quite beautiful. This brought on quite a few memories of his first and truest friend, Hedwig. Harry immersed himself in the happy memories that he had of Hedwig, but they slowly faded away and he was left with an empty feeling. The realization that he would not be reunited with his favorite girl caused Harry to turn away and head back to the entrance.

" _Sssuch a sad looking human, maybe he lossst out on a nice fat rat."_

Harry quickly spun around at the unexpected voice, and came face to face with beautiful snake that was as black as his untameable hair.

" _Why do you look so ssssurprised human, do you not like rats?"_ the snake spoke again.

" _Can you understand me?"_ Harry hissed back as quietly as he could.

" _Ahhh! A ssspeaker! It ssseems dreamss do come true! Take me home speaker and I will forever be your faithful companion,"_ the snake pretty much begged Harry.

He came to the conclusion that since the horcrux resided in him for so long, he must have absorbed his parslemouth ability from it. "Excuse me sir," Harry called out to a balding middle aged man who seemed to work at the store, "could you tell me about this snake?"

"Of course boy!" the man called back as he waddled over to Harry. "Ooohh, she is a feisty one. A magical black mamba that one is!" the man exclaimed. "She ain't ever wanted to leave with another wizard before, I guess you're the lucky guy she's been waitin' for."

" _Yesss, yessss please take me sspeaker. No wizard but a sssspeaker deservesss to be my companion,"_ the snake hissed as she lifted her head up in a haughty manner.

"Who would I be to deny a woman what she wants," Harry said with a smirk, "I'll take her."

"Ay that will take you far in life lad," the man chuckled, as he took the galleons from Harry and headed off to help a small family that were looking at kittens.

" _What is your name?_ " Harry asked the snake as he headed out of the shop.

" _My name is Sssaphira companion,"_ she answered while coiling up around Harry's arm, " _where are we heading to now?"_

" _I have one more stop to make Saphira before I get my wand,"_ Harry answered as he made his way towards _Flourish and Blotts_.

"Excuse me," Harry said as he came up to a pretty blonde worker, "could you find me a copy of _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_?" he asked.

"Ya, for sure!" the girl said excitedly as she led him throughout the store. "Aren't you a little bit too old for children stories though?" she asked teasingly.

"Umm, well-erm…it's for my girlfriends uh little brother," Harry lied rather lamely.

"Oh, well here it is," the girl seemed to deflate slightly as she handed the book over, "I uh hope the kid enjoys it," she added as she headed back to the counter.

Harry quickly paid another worker and put his newest purchase in his rucksack along with everything else he picked up today. As Harry left the store, he saw a familiar head of unruly black hair down the street, surrounded by a group of people. Slowly that head turned around and green eyes locked onto hazel, causing Harry to freeze.

* * *

"Hey Prongsie! You think Tom's got eyes on the back of his head," an excited Sirius Black said as he followed his best friend through the doors of The Leaky Cauldron. "I mean, how else could he have seen you sneaking that shot of fire whiskey."

"Shut up Padfoot," James Potter responded as he hit Sirius over the head. "There's no way he has eyes on the back of his head, it's got to be some type of charm or something," he muttered to himself trying to figure out how he got caught again.

"You think Moony and Wormy will be here soon?" Sirius asked while bouncing around like a newly born puppy, "I haven't seen them in _forever_."

"Well that's because they have family that want to spend time with them when they get back from Hogwarts," James responded without thinking. As he kept on walking he realized that Sirius wasn't beside him anymore, and when James turned around he found Sirius standing still with his head down.

"Merlin! Sorry Padfoot I didn't mean to bring that up," James said as he hurried back to Sirius. "I'm sure they'll come around at some point, how could they not with a guy like you. Just remember that they're not the only family you've got. You've got me, Dorea, and Charlus too; hell you've even got Moony and Wormtail!" James said trying to cheer up his brother in all but blood.

"Thanks Prongs, you have no idea how thankful I am that you guys took me in this summer. Potter Manor already is a better home than I've ever had," Sirius said as he looked back up at James.

"All right, enough soppy shite Pads, let's get to Fortescue's before the other two idiots do," James responded as the two started to race back down the alley.

As the two waited and ate their ice cream at a table, a shadow came over them and the two boys looked up into the friendly face of Frank Longbottom.

"How are my two favorite roommates?" he asked with a smile that could have lit up the entire alley at night.

"Doing great Frank!" James cheerfully responded.

"How about you?" Sirius asked back.

"Doing much better now that I'm talking to you two and not going through the shops with Augusta," he answered while checking over both shoulders.

"Don't worry she's not there," Sirius answered while barking out a laugh.

"Well you can never be entirely sure," Frank responded with a little grin, "the woman tends to pop up everywhere at the worst moments."

"Still as overbearing as ever?" James asked with a small frown.

"Unfortunately…"

"I guess that means you're still declining the invitation to join the Marauders," Sirius stated with a small pout. "You could always replace Wormtail?"

"Oy Padfoot, c'mon, I thought I told you to save the funny Wormtail jokes for when he's actually here," James laughed out.

"Sorry guys, you know I have to decline, mum would have my head if I got into as much trouble as you four," Frank explained. "Also, I'd rather spend my free time with someone else instead of you prats."

"Ahhh yes, the lovely Alice how could we forget," Sirius said with a sly grin. "I swear they spend more time together than every other couple we know put together Prongsie."

"That's only because Frank needs to constantly re-apply the _Imperious_ to stop her from running away," James added while trying to avoid the punch Frank sent his way.

"Alright you gits, at least I have a girlfriend!" Frank retorted. "Oh, Augusta is coming so I better scram," he said as he headed back to his mum.

"He is right you know," said a familiar voice from behind, "at least he's with the girl that he wants to be with."

"Ya bad luck Prongsie," Sirius laughed out, "Moony's right, Frank's got that over you, because you're nowhere near getting Lily to finally say yes to you. What are we on now…rejection 127?"

"It's actually number 117 right now," Wormtail said with a small laugh.

"Good to know that you're counting Peter," Remus said as his lips curled up slightly.

"Anyways…" James cut in trying to stop the teasing, "now that you guys are finally here, I wanted to ask how your summers have been?"

"Ok I guess," Peter said meekly, "mum is always trying to baby me. I swear she thinks that I'm still five years old."

"I think it's the baby fat," Sirius said while squeezing Peter's chubby cheeks, "once you lose that, then you'll finally hit puberty, and maybe after that if you're lucky she'll let you take off the diapers," Sirius finished while the rest of the boys burst out laughing.

"Alright, alright," Remus intervened as Peter turned a deep shade of red, "we're obviously joking Wormtail, you know that we love you."

"Ok, out with it Remus what have you been up to so far?" James asked.

"Well I've spent a lot of time with my mum painting and helping her out with the art business she runs," he began, "and me and my dad researched and experimented with different techniques and methods to help with my time of the month."

"Ah, don't worry about your furry little problem Moony," Sirius burst in, "we've got that covered for you," he finished while putting his arms around James and Peter,

"Definitely Remus," James added, "we all figured out our forms last year, and this year I'm pretty sure we'll finally get it done. Sirius has done a lot of research on it over the summer and we think we'll get it by Christmas."

"Ya, and while I've been doing actual research, Prongs here has been coming up with new ways to ask out Evans." Sirius said dryly.

"So what! I think this might actually be the year! I've come up with so many new ideas to ask her out, and there's no way she'll say no."

"I don't know Prongs, I don't think charming her dinner plate and utensils to dance around and sing her a love song is the best way to get her to say yes," Sirius said trying to make James see sense, "I'm pretty sure there's a higher chance of my bedding a Slytherin then there is of you going on a date with Evans."

"And why would a Slytherin ever want to get near a bed with you," said a sharp, cool voice that made the Marauders turn around in surprise.

"Ahh dear cousin, that would be because I am truly irresistible," Sirius responded while playing with his wavy hair.

"Of course, there is nothing that a girl finds more irresistible than a boy who is more in love with himself then Filch is with his cat," came the sarcastic response.

"She's got you there Padfoot," snickered James.

"Oy! Why are you agreeing with her, I thought you were my back up Prongs!"

"Yes James, I really don't know why you are laughing when the girl that you're in love with would rather spend time with Severus than you," she retorted with an icy tone.

"Wait a second," James called out, "I thought we were working together against Sirius."

"Now why would I do that," she responded with an teasing smile.

"You two idiots make it way too easy for Bellatrix to get you," said Remus while trying to hold in his laughter at his two flustered friends.

"Why thank you Remus," Bellatrix said with a small curtsey.

"I'm pretty sure I saw Rodolphus over by the entrance to Knocturn earlier," Sirius said trying to get one over Bellatrix, "why don't you go and play with your future husband."

At this, Bellatrix's playful demeanor quickly vanished and was replaced with a terrifying icy look, "I'd sooner knock myself out then go and play anything with that overgrown ape," Bellatrix said as her voice started to raise, "which I am pretty sure is something that every girl has had to do to themselves after they realized that they had spent more than five minutes in your company you homeless bastard!" Bellatrix almost screeched.

Sirius tensed and his hands balled into fists, which caused the other three marauders to try and diffuse the situation before it got out of hand.

"Well it's been lovely Bellatrix. I hope that we can continue this at the next family gathering," James said as the rest of the boys were preparing to leave after finally getting Sirius under control.

As James turned around, he caught sight of another boy with very familiar unruly black hair. When their eyes connected, James froze for what felt like an eternity, before the other boy practically sprinted off in the other direction.

"What in Godric's glorious nuts was that!" Sirius shouted, as the rest of the boys and Bellatrix were stupefied with what they just saw.

"I really don't know…" James' voice trailed off as he watched the other boy disappear in the crowds of Diagon Alley.


	5. Chapter 5

Harry sprinted away from his father and towards Ollivander's in the hope that he could get his wand and finally find a place to rest and process all that he had gone through recently.

" _Companion? Why were you afraid of that boy?"_ asked Saphira.

" _That was my father,"_ Harry replied with a sad look on his face.

" _Your father? How can sssuch a young boy be your father companion?"_ she asked trying clarify what was going on.

" _Not now Saphira, I will explain later,"_ Harry said as he approached Ollivander's.

When the bell announced Harry's return to the shop, the old wand maker popped out from behind his shelves and made his way towards Harry, "Ah, he returns, I must say that I very much enjoyed the time I had with this wand," he said.

"Erm-well, uh yes, thanks," Harry managed to get out while the feeling of uneasiness he got from Ollivander returned.

As Harry reached to grab his wand he noticed that after the addition of the phoenix feather, there were now golden swirls mixed into the white wood along with the previous black and silver swirls. "It truly is remarkable," Ollivander said breaking the silence, "such beauty and strength in a wand. I hope that you take good care of it, because this wand seems destined for great things," he added while admiring the wand. "Oh yes, definitely meant for great things," he concluded while this time studying Harry with his old grey eyes.

"Yes, well, I think I need to be going now," Harry said as he reached for the seven galleons needed to pay Ollivander.

"I would like to add that since the wand was previously made I couldn't add the ministry tracking charm to your wand without damaging it in some way," the old man said, "I do hope that you will act responsibly," he finished.

"No need to worry then, since 'responsible' is my middle name," Harry nervously chuckled while Ollivander raised an eyebrow slightly amused with the boy.

As Harry was about to leave, Ollivander's old hand grabbed hold of him, causing Harry to spin around and look into his grey eyes. "I do wish you good luck Peverell," he parted as he let go of Harry's arm.

Not knowing what to say to that, Harry gave him a curt nod before getting out of the store as fast as possible without actually sprinting.

"Bloody hell! How does he know who I am," Harry muttered to himself as he was making his way back to the Leaky Cauldron.

" _It really is quite sssimple companion,"_ Saphira hissed out.

" _How is it simple!? Did he read my mind? Is he some type of seer?"_ Harry hissed back.

" _No none of them, he iss jussst a creepy old man."_

" _Then how?"_

" _I think it has sssomething to do with the Thestral and symbol that you have engrained on your wand companion."_

" _Oh…"_ Harry said feeling quite stupid, " _I still think there's something weird with that man,"_ Harry mumbled back to Saphira as they arrived back at the Leaky Cauldron.

"Excuse me," Harry said as he approached Tom at the bar, "could I book a room for tonight?"

When Tom looked up he did a double take before answering, "umm, sure ya, you could be havin' room thirteen tonight," he said while handing over the key.

"Is something wrong?" Harry asked slightly concerned.

"Oh no nothin', yer just be lookin' a lot like that Potter boy who causes me so much trouble," Tom laughed out.

Harry smiled back at the thought of his father causing trouble at the bar, and grabbed the key before heading upstairs. The moment he entered his room, Harry tossed his rucksack onto a chair, stripped to his boxers, and hopped into bed with Saphira.

The moment Harry's head hit the pillow, the reality of his situation came crashing down. Harry hadn't slept in days, the last little bit of sleep he got was the night before his History of Magic exam, and even that was minimal as he spent most of the night cramming. From that point on, his life had been an emotional rollercoaster: from the vision sent from Voldemort, to being captured by Umbridge, flying off to the Ministry to save Sirius, the ambush by the Death Eaters, his friends dying, himself dying and meeting Death, the horcrux inside him, being a Peverell, his purpose in defeating Voldemort, going back in time, the events in Diagon Alley, and to top it off he saw his father for the first time.

All these emotions flooded into Harry at once as the adrenaline finally wore off, and they completely overwhelmed him. All of this was just too much for him to handle, causing Harry to start crying. It was the first time Harry properly cried in years, since he had learned to bottle up all of his emotions due to the years of abuse at the hands of the Dursleys. Harry cried for the loss of his parents, he cried for the death of his old friends, but most importantly he cried for himself. Harry cried for the childhood he never had, he cried over the years of abuse he had to endure, he cried for all the times he had been vilified, and he cried for not knowing what he was going to do in this world or how he was going to defeat Voldemort.

Eventually the dam burst, and he fell into uncontrollable sobbing. This lasted throughout the night until Harry finally fell into the best sleep he had ever had. All the while Saphira coiled around her new companion and tried her best to hiss soothing sounds into his ear.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a very familiar castle out in Scotland, Albus Dumbledore was enjoying a rare evening to himself. He sat in his favorite chair listening to classical music, simply enjoying the peace as he popped another lemon drop into his mouth. "There truly is nothing that soothes the soul quite like music," he said to himself as Gershwin's _Rhapsody in Blue_ started to play. Unfortunately for Albus this peace lasted only a few minutes longer, as the identification ward at his office door was triggered. The name of the person brought a small frown to his face as he quickly made his way down the stairs from his living area to his office.

"Do come in," he called out as he flicked open the doors to his office. He was met with the sight of a frazzled looking young girl who smelt slightly of sherry.

"Miss Trelawney, how lovely it is to see you again so soon after graduation," Dumbledore said kindly, "have you by chance also visited Filius? I am sure he would love to see one of his Ravenclaw's again," he added hoping that she came here to his office by mistake.

"Oh-oh no Headmaster, the inner eye led me here tonight," she said in a haunting voice that sounded rather fake.

"Ah, I see…what can I do for you?" Dumbledore asked, "I am fairly certain a young girl such as yourself has much better things to do on a Friday evening then spend time with an old man."

"The eye has led me here and asks for a position on your staff," she responded ignoring what Albus said before, "to open up Divination once again and have me as the professor."

"That is an interesting proposition," Albus answered while tugging on his beard to make it appear as if he were considering the offer, "However, I feel that I must decline for now. Perhaps in a few years after you've gained some more experience with your gift," he reasoned hoping that she would recognize his dismissal and he could continue on with his pleasant evening.

Thankfully she did, as she started to stumble her way out of his office. But suddenly she froze:

 _ **As Evil Approaches Its Greatest Enemy Returns**_

 _ **A Battle Over Death, Of Which Only One Can Emerge Victorious**_

 _ **Born Again After Death, He Returns**_

 _ **A Great And Ancient Power That Evil Knows Not**_

 _ **As Evil Approaches Its Greatest Enemy Returns**_

As the haunting voice of Trelawney finished the prophecy, she suddenly looked around with a confused look on her face, and then continued to walk out of the office.

Albus Dumbledore was frozen in place trying to process what had just happened. He didn't put much faith into Divination as it was such an obscure branch of magic, but that did not mean that there was no truth in it. With that, Dumbledore sighed as he realized that the peaceful evening he was enjoying was officially over.

* * *

A very confused James Potter made his way home with Sirius Black that night. As they made their way to the kitchen, they were met with the regal and beautiful Dorea Potter (nee Black) as well as the handsome Charlus Potter.

"Hey Aunt Dorea! Uncle Charlus!" an excited Sirius Black called out as he took a handful of freshly baked cookies that the house elves had prepared.

"Hello Sirius," a smiling Charlus said as he ruffled his wavy hair, "have a good day out in the alley?"

"Yup! It was as awesome as ever!" he answered with cookie crumbs shooting out of his mouth.

"And how about you James?" Dorea's sweet voice called out to her son.

"Oh um, ya it was ahh good," James responded only half listening.

"Sirius," Dorea called out to the boy who was still shoving cookies into his mouth, "was that Lily Evans there today?" she asked trying to figure out why her son had such a dazed look on his face.

"Ummm, nope. We didn't see her."

"Oh, so another girl?" she pressed on.

"I don't think so…" Sirius said while scratching his head trying to think back, "there was only Bellatrix that we ran into," he added with a small frown. "Oh! But there was a boy!" he suddenly remembered.

"A boy!" Charlus yelped as he spat out a combination of coffee and cookies all over Sirius. "I definitely was not expecting that," he said as he wiped his mouth clean.

"What!?" James called out, "there was not a boy! Oh wait there was…but umm not like that, ewww! I mean not like there's anything wrong with that, but no…I mean yes," James stumbled out as he finally snapped back to reality.

"So was there a boy or not?" Dorea asked with a raised eyebrow, as Sirius and Charlus were trying their best to hold in their laughter behind her.

"No, I mean yes, but not like _that_ ," James answered with a bit of a grimace.

With that, Sirius and Charlus couldn't hold it in any longer and they burst out laughing. By the time they settled down there was milk, coffee, and cookies all over the table, the floor and themselves. This caused a very angry Mopsey to pop in, hit them both over the heads, and clean the mess.

"Ok, so tell me about this boy," Dorea continued hoping to figure out what was going on.

"He was Prongsies twin!" Sirius butted in when he finally calmed down.

"Twin?!" Dorea and Charlus asked together looking rather perplexed.

"Exactly what Sirius said," James answered, "the guy looked exactly like me. Almost like I was looking into a mirror except he didn't wear glasses, had green eyes, and maybe slightly higher cheekbones."

"Now that you mention it Prongs, he had eyes like Evans. Maybe he's yours and Evans' lovechild from the future," Sirius said as he burst out laughing again.

"James can you give me a memory of this boy," Dorea asked as she exchanged a look with Charlus.

"Ya, for sure mum," James said as he pulled the memory from his head.

"We will be back in a few minutes boys," Dorea called out as her and Charlus made their way out of the room and to find the family pensieve.

Five minutes later Dorea and Charlus entered the room again with shocked looks on their faces, which caused James and Sirius to abandon their game of who could fit the most cookies in their mouth.

"So, do you know who he is?" James asked expectantly.

"Well yes," Charlus answered slowly as if he were still trying to process what they found, "we think you found family."

"Family…?" James spoke slightly confused.

"Yes family," Charlus responded with a bit more confidence this time, "we think that you found a Peverell."

"A Peverell? I thought we absorbed the Peverell's?"

"We did…but maybe he comes from a squib branch that nobody had heard about."

"He certainly looked like a Peverell," Dorea muttered under her breath.

"What do you mean?" Sirius cut in, "he looked exactly like James."

"That is true," Charlus answered, "except for some of the details that James already mentioned. The Peverell's are where us Potter men have gotten our unique hair from, except the Peverell's always had black hair whereas us Potter's could really have any colour, even though it is usually brown or black. The Peverell's always had either grey or green eyes and never needed glasses unlike the Potter's and they had remarkably high cheekbones compared to the Potter's strong jawline. They also tended to be quite thin compared to the Potter's, who were much more muscular."

"But nonetheless," Dorea added, "he does look like James' twin, Sirius," she finished giving him a smile.

"We need to find him then if he's family!" James exclaimed.

"Ya! I want to meet him too, maybe he can be the one to replace Wormy in the Marauders," Sirius laughed to himself just as James smacked him over the head.

"We will find him and introduce ourselves, but that is a job for tomorrow," Dorea said as she cupped James' cheek in her hand, "now head upstairs and get some rest, and don't worry too much about this," she finished as she kissed the top of his head.

With that, the two boys raced upstairs and went straight to bed where they dreamt of what mischief they could manage the next day.

* * *

"I swear it was the weirdest thing I have ever seen!" a girl with beautiful raven locks and piercing violet eyes exclaimed to her sisters. "It was like there were two copies of James just staring at each other, except this one had green eyes and no glasses."

"Oh you're soooo lucky Bella, James is soooooo handsome and you got to see two of him!" exclaimed a cute little blonde girl with regal features.

"Ok enough Cissy," exclaimed the oldest of the three, who was just as beautiful as the rest, "we all know you have a crush on the Marauders."

This caused the youngest one to blush furiously, "not Peter though, he's really weird."

"Enough talk about boys!" the middle girl cut in, "I want to figure out who this other person is, because we all know James is an only child, and the only other Potters are Fleamont and Euphemia who are too old to have children," she reasoned.

"I don't know Bella, maybe the sun and shadows played with your eyes and it was just another random wizard down in the alley," the oldest responded.

"No it can't have been," Bellatrix continued, "they both froze when they made eye contact and everybody saw the same thing."

"Well then I don't have an answer for you."

"Maybe he'll be going to Hogwarts?"

"Perhaps, but why wouldn't he have been going there already?"

"Aggghh!" Bellatrix cried out in frustration, "it was just so weird I need to find out what happened and who this person is."

"Not all mysteries need to be solved Bella," the oldest said in an effort to calm Bellatrix down.

"Andi! I think Bella has a crush," the youngest said slightly mischievously.

"As much as I would love to think that," Andromeda laughed to herself, "this is Bella we are talking about. The moment she finds out who the boy is, the mystery will be solved, and then she'll move onto the next one."

"Oh right, it would have been funny though," Narcissa said with a little giggle.

"Not to mention there is also Rodolphus," Andi added.

With that, Bellatrix seemed to tense up and her piercing violet eyes iced over, "I thought I told you never to mention his name," she said in a cold voice, "or would you like me to mention your secret romance the next time the family comes over?" Bellatrix threatened.

"Secret romance?" Narcissa piped up.

"You wouldn't dare," Andromeda responded matching Bellatrix's gaze, while ignoring their youngest sister.

"Bellatrix!" came the sharp voice of her father from downstairs, "come downstairs, we have something important to discuss."

This broke the stare down that the two eldest sisters were currently competing in, as Bellatrix quickly hurried down the stairs before she made her father wait too long. Once she made it downstairs she was greeted with the intimidating figures that were Cyrus and Druella Black, who then invited her into the sitting room.

"I have received a letter," Cygnus drawled, "from quite the important young man."

Bellatrix kept quiet and allowed her father to continue.

"He has requested that on the train ride to Hogwarts this year, that _you_ sit in his compartment and accompany him on the way to the castle."

"And who would this young man be father?" Bellatrix asked innocently even though she knew exactly who it was.

"That would be young Rodolphus Lestrange, heir to The Most Ancient House of Lestrange," he answered with a small smirk.

"Now isn't that wonderful!" cried out Druella, "such a handsome and powerful young man asking for your company."

"Oh yes mother, it is quite the honour," Bellatrix lied through her teeth, as her nails were currently drawing blood from how hard she was pressing into her palms.

"You will accompany him, and you will represent our family as well as we would expect you to," Cygnus ordered her. "This is a very important alliance, especially since I have heard rumours that Lord Lestrange is thinking of sending Arcturus an offer for your marriage."

At hearing this Bellatrix wanted to scream out in protest, but just as her pureblood tutoring taught her to do, she schooled her features and gave a gracious nod. "Might I be excused now, it has been quite a tiresome day, and having extra rest would be appreciated," she asked her father.

"Of course Bellatrix," he replied waving her off.

With that, Bellatrix raced up the stairs as gracefully as she could before throwing herself into her pillow, crying herself to sleep.

 **AN**

 _ **Thank you all for the lovely reviews, they are much appreciated.**_

 _ **I will answer some question/concerns that people had:**_

 ** _1) The reason Harry was acting slightly OOC was due to a combination of things:_**

 ** _The adrenaline rush he had from the events at the DoM, the absurdity of him meeting death, learning his heritage and the role he has to play in defeating Voldemort, the removal of the horcrux, and learning the true power that he possesses, were all contributing factors. Now that he has had a chance to sleep on everything that has happened, Harry will more or less be returning to normal. Meaning that the Harry who has no clue how to act around girls (that we all know and love) will be returning, but with more confidence in himself and his abilities._**

 ** _2) What year Harry and everybody else will be in:_**

 ** _We will find out what year Harry will be in very soon... I can say that the Marauders, Frank, Lily, and friends will be going into 5th year. Bellatrix will also be going into her 5th year, while Andromeda will be in 7th year, and Narcissa will be in 3rd year. Other important characters will be introduced as the story goes along._**


	6. Chapter 6

The next morning brought on a beautiful sunny day where there wasn't a single cloud in the sky, which was a rarity in Britain. As sunlight poured through a small window into a rundown old room in central London, the young raven haired teen who was currently sleeping in the room started to wake. As he opened his eyes, the usual feeling of drowsiness was not there but instead he was left with an eagerness to get on with his day. It was the best that the young man had ever felt; no pain from his scar, no ache in his bones, and no lasting effects from sleep deprivation. However, he also came to the realization that everything that had happened to him recently was not some strange dream, and that he truly was sent back in time by Death.

" _I sssee that you have finally woken companion,"_ commented Saphira, " _how are you feeling?"_

" _It's the best I have ever remembered feeling!"_ Harry smiled brightly _, "I think I have come to peace with what I am meant to do, and if I'm successful then Ron, Hermione, Neville and the rest of my friends will all get to live much happier lives_ ," Harry finished as his smile turned a little sad.

" _Well then companion we have much to do, but firsssst I would like a nice fat rat,"_ she hissed as she slid around the room looking for any hiding rodents.

With the thought of food Harry's stomach gave a large gurgle, and Harry made sure his first order of business was ordering a full English breakfast from Tom. When the food finally arrived Harry wolfed it all down in a way that would have impressed Ron. He also transfigured some bread into a large rat, which Saphira quickly pounced on.

Now with a full stomach, Harry started to go through his rucksack and pulled out some of the books he thought would be important to read. As he came across the new copy of _Tales of Beedle the Bard_ , Harry remembered the advice of Death and decided that he should read it first.

Harry read through the many different wizard children stories and found them to be quite cute, but ultimately useless. He also thought that the muggle fairy tales that he heard Aunt Petunia read to Dudley, were much better than the wizard stories. He started to question why Death wanted him to read this book, until he came across the final story, _The Tale of the Three Brothers_. As he read through the story he came to the realization that the three brothers were his ancestors Antioch, Cadmus, and Ignotus. The items must have been given to them by Death, and they would have been heirlooms that he was meant to receive. Perhaps Death wanted him to find all three?

Harry went to open the journals that belonged to the three brothers, which he found within his vault. However, he encountered the same problem each time he wanted to open one of them to read. As he opened the journal to the first page he found a sketch of what the artifact looked like, but as he tried to read what was beyond the first page the writing would vanish and the journal would close itself.

Over the next few hours Harry tried countless methods to keep the journal open and to prevent the writing from disappearing, but nothing came of it. He decided that it was likely that in order to read the journal, one would also need to be in possession of the artifact.

Instead of attempting to read on, Harry decided that it would be a better idea to study the sketches.

When Harry looked at the sketch of the wand he felt almost as if he had seen it before, but he couldn't quite place it. Maybe it was just his sub-conscious playing tricks with him. The wand itself was beautiful, even more beautiful than the wand Harry currently had in his possession. The sketch was shaded in a way that depicted the wand to be dark in color, and it had the most magnificent carvings along the shaft of the wand, which made it look like there were berries inside the wood.

The resurrection stone in the sketch showed that the stone was currently housed in a simple looking gold ring. The stone itself was sketched completely black with that strange symbol engraved into one of its sides. It was amazing that an artifact with so much power was simply a small stone.

The final sketch that Harry looked at was the cloak of invisibility. The moment Harry took a good look at the sketch his heart almost stopped, and he dropped the journal to the floor.

" _Companion iss sssomething the matter?"_ Saphira hissed worriedly.

"Merlin's beard!" Harry gasped, "to think that I actually had it for so long…" he muttered to himself.

" _Companion answer me!_ " Saphira hissed a little louder.

" _Sorry Saphira, I'm just amazed that I held onto one of Death's own artifacts for years without even knowing it,"_ Harry answered with a look of awe on his face.

Suddenly Harry burst out laughing, and it took almost ten minutes for him to finally regain some sort of control over himself.

" _Why did I pick myself sssuch a funny companion,"_ Saphira hissed to herself, " _I should have jussst gone home with those blonde ferret looking people."_

"Sweet Merlin!" Harry chuckled to himself, "an artifact given from Death herself and I used it to sneak food from the kitchens and avoid Ron and Hermione whenever they got into one of their lover's spats," Harry finished as he burst out laughing again.

It took another thirty minutes before Harry could think straight again, and when he did, he came to another realization. "Shit!" Harry yelled out to himself, "how am I supposed to get the cloak from James."

This lead to forty minutes of Harry trying to come up with a scheme to get the cloak from James. One of which included knocking James out, taking the cloak, exchanging it for a blanket, and writing a note saying, 'Sorry, it ran out of invisibility.' Needless to say, none of the ideas were any good, and Harry decided he would save that problem for later.

One last thing Harry decided to do before he called it a day, was give the occlumency book he found in his vault a read. The book was quite advanced and Harry did not understand most of it, but he did come to find that meditation was the first step in building mental defences. This also proved to Harry that Snape was not teaching him properly, and that he was using the occlumency lesson times to privately torture Harry. "Sadistic git," Harry mumbled under his breath.

* * *

Over the next few weeks, Harry came up with a daily routine that he followed while staying at the Leaky Cauldron. Every morning he would wake up and meditate before moving on to different mental exercises the occlumency book spoke about; he followed this up with breakfast before heading out and walking around the alley. After this, Harry read through different books he had bought and spent time practicing spells he already knew, in order to get a better feel for his magic.

The change to his magic was one of the things that took Harry most by surprise. Before when Harry casted spells he never truly felt his magic, and he resorted to forcing the spells to come out, which usually led them to be quite overpowered. This wasn't a problem for spells used in Defence Against the Dark Arts or for certain charms, like the _Patronus_ , that required a lot of power. But it caused problems in various charms and transfigurations that required a certain level of finesse.

With these changes, Harry could actually _feel_ his magic flow through him like water does in a river. He now had to learn how to control the vast amount of power he could feel within himself, and to use his control to guide his magic with spells that required more finesse.

He was still a work in progress, but he was making vast improvements, and nothing could take the smile off of his face now that his magic finally belonged to him.

Harry ended his days with a nice big supper courtesy of Tom, speaking with Saphira who he learnt was quite the princess, and practicing his occlumency once more before heading off to bed.

* * *

It was a week before Hogwarts was supposed to begin when Harry finally felt as if his basic mental shields would be enough to prevent Dumbledore from picking anything up with a passive legilimency scan.

As Harry finished his breakfast he thanked Tom, packed his rucksack, and headed out the muggle exit of the Leaky Cauldron with Saphira curled up around his upper arm. As he approached the road, Harry stuck out his wand like a hitchhiker, and a purple triple decker bus appeared almost immediately.

"Welcome to the Night Bus, Magical Transport fer all types o' wizards an witches. The name's Al Shunpike, an I'll be yer conductor this evenin'...er I mean day," announced a slivery haired old wizard who was reading his introduction off of a cue card. "Where too son?" Shunpike asked.

"As close to Hogwarts as you can drop me off sir," Harry responded as he finally could see the resemblance between Stan and his father Al.

"Hit the gas Ern! We be headin' off ter Hogwarts," Al yelled out do the driver.

Suddenly, the bus gave a great bang and they were shooting throughout downtown London. Harry fell over onto a bed with the initial lurch of the bus, but slowly he started to regain his balance.

"Don't mean to be nosey er anythin'," Al started, "but don't Hogwarts not start fer another week son?" he asked.

"Umm ya it hasn't started yet," Harry answered, "but I'm new this year and was hoping to speak to the Headmaster about enrolling."

"Yer look a little too big to be one of dem firsties," Al stated while cleaning his glasses trying to get a better look at Harry.

"Oh no," Harry chuckled as he took a step back from Al who was starting to enter his personal space, "I'm not a first year, I'm a transfer student."

"Where ye from?"

"I'm from America…but umm I moved around a lot," Harry lied trying to come up with a good cover story. Something which he totally neglected to do until now.

"Oh er I see," Al said starting to lose interest in the conversation. "Well erm I gotta go see what's up with Ern," he said heading back to the front of the bus.

For the rest of the ride, Harry sat in silence trying his best to keep down the large breakfast he had enjoyed so much that morning.

Finally, the trip ended with the bus stopping just in front of the large iron front gates, and Harry stumbled out vowing to never step foot on that bus again. Harry stood in front of the gates for a few minutes waiting for someone to make an appearance, before finally the stern figure of Professor McGonagall made her way before him. It took almost all of Harry's self-control and basic occlumency skills to prevent himself from smiling at the sight of his former head of house and favorite teacher.

"Might I ask what you are doing here young man," McGonagall asked with her lips pursed and the slightest bit of her Scottish accent poking through.

"Umm, well I was wondering if I could speak to the Headmaster about enrolling here for the coming term?" Harry asked nervously.

"It is an unorthodox request," she paused while thinking, "but he is in right now, and I suppose it could be allowed this one time," she finished as she opened the gate.

As Harry stepped out of the shadows of the gate, Minerva caught her first full glance at his face, and stiffened slightly.

"Ah right," Harry said as he witnessed her reaction, "I am not James Potter, who I have been told many times looks just like me."

"I see, well follow me then," Minerva responded while giving him a slight glare at being spoken to in such a casual way.

Harry wilted slightly at her glare, reminding him of the look she gave him in first year when he was caught out of bed with Neville and Hermione. He made a note to remember that he was not familiar with her yet in this time, and had to watch the way he spoke to her.

"Can I ask where you are from?" she asked Harry breaking the silence.

"Well my family came from Britain but I grew up in America, and then we sort of moved all over," Harry answered trying out his cover story again.

"Interesting, and what is your name?"

"Harry, Harry Peverell," Harry responded leaving out both of his middle names.

With that, Harry noticed Minerva stiffen again, but it was so quick that he could have just imagined it.

"What level of schooling have you had so far," she asked again trying to gather a little more information as they made their way inside of the castle.

"Well, umm…I was mostly home schooled by different tutors that we could find at the time," Harry made up on the spot, "so I'm not exactly sure how it will all line up with the Hogwarts curriculum. I guess it is up to the Headmaster to place me where he wants…if I do get accepted."

"I wish you good luck Mr. Peverell," McGonagall said as she led him to the Headmaster's office, "and hope to see you here on the first," she finished just as the stone gargoyle jumped to the giving Harry entrance.

Right before she turned around to leave Harry spoke up, "I was wondering if I could ask you a favour?" Harry asked nervously.

"You may," she responded with a blank face.

"Could I possibly use your floo in order to get back home after the meeting," Harry proceeded to ask, "I sort of vowed to myself that I would never ride the Night Bus again after my ride here," he finished with a shy grin.

"That sounds reasonable," McGonagall replied.

"Thank you…professor," Harry said with a small smirk, and he was pretty sure he saw the ends of McGonagall's lips curl up as well.

Harry proceeded up the stairs, and just as he expected, the Headmaster called for him to enter as he was about to knock. As Harry entered the office, he found that it generally looked just as messy as it did from his own time. Ancient tomes and papers were found scattered across the room and Dumbledore's desk, there was a perch for Fawkes who currently wasn't there, and he saw many of the same obscure magical instruments lined up along his desk.

"Have a seat my boy, I believe you were wanting to ask me something," Dumbledore stated while appearing to be just as grandfatherly as ever.

"Yes, well," Harry started, buying himself some time to throw up his basic mind shields, "I was wondering if there was any way I could attend Hogwarts this year?" Harry asked getting right to the point.

"The school's attendance for this year has already been set, however I'm sure we could make an exception," Dumbledore said out loud. He then shifted in his seat and brought his bright blue eyes level with Harry's, "Tell me Mr. Peverell, what is the cause of your sudden reappearance in England."

Harry knew the question was coming, but he was still caught slightly unawares by the direct way of which Dumbledore had asked, "Well, uh you see sir, my family originates from Britain as I am sure you are aware," Harry started, getting into the groove of his now well practiced story, "I was raised in America by my parents, but as I grew older we tended to travel a lot. We lived in Canada at one point, Mexico, Brazil, and a few other small South American countries. As we went along I was privately tutored by whoever was available," Harry continued happy with how his story sounded.

"Forgive me, I am an old man," Dumbledore cut in using his 'dotty old fool' trick to lower people's guard, "but I can't remember a wizard in recent times with the last name Peverell."

This was the make or break moment Harry realized, "My parents weren't wizards," Harry responded, "they were…I guess you would call them squibs. We went by the last name Pevrelle."

"I see…" Dumbledore pondered before waving his hand as if telling Harry to go on.

"Well my father was a business man, he worked with oil and other natural resources, which is why we moved around so much. He never really liked talking about his family's history. Whereas my mother stayed at home with me, finding tutors and trying to teach me as much as she could about the magical world," Harry continued to build his story.

"And have they come home with you? It would be quite interesting to meet them," Dumbledore asked with an inquisitive look on his face.

"No…" Harry answered using his best acting abilities to make himself look sad, "they died a couple months ago in a car crash. That's how I got this scar," Harry improvised, while lifting up his hair to show the faded lightning bolt.

Dumbledore seemed to believe Harry's 'heartbreaking' story, which had Harry silently thank Petunia and Vernon for the first time in his life.

"After the funerals," Harry continued on laying it thick for Dumbledore, "I decided it would be nice to return to my home country…where my parents grew up. When I arrived I received a letter from Gringotts inviting me down to the bank where they explained a few things to me, and now here I am," Harry said finishing his story.

"Such a tragic and eventful life you have lived my boy," Dumbledore said with a sad smile as their eyes locked. Harry tensed as he felt a small sweep across his mind as Dumbledore checked the validity of his story. To Harry's relief it seemed that Dumbledore was more or less satisfied with what Harry had to say, and did not pick up any stray surface thoughts.

"Might I ask how far your schooling has taken you?" Dumbledore continued on.

"My schooling was not the most consistent," Harry replied, "but I think I was around 5th or 6th year material."

"Did you ever take your OWLs or any other standardized wizards test?"

"Unfortunately no."

"Well…" Dumbledore paused, "I am happy to tell you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. However, since you have no record of any standardized test I will have to place you in 5th year."

"That sounds fantastic headmaster," Harry said with a grateful smile.

"Well I wish you a good rest of the day, and remember to catch the Hogwarts Express at King's Cross station, platform 9 3/4, on the first at 11 o'clock. I look forward to your sorting at the feast," Dumbledore concluded with a twinkle in his eye.

As Harry left the office, he lowered his mind shields, breathed a sigh of relief, wiped down his sweaty palms, and did a little dance as he made his way to the floo in McGonagall's office.

* * *

The moment the name Harry Peverell popped up when Dumbledore's identification ward was triggered, Albus knew that he was in for an interesting meeting. Needless to say he wasn't disappointed.

The boy who came in looked nervous enough, just as any student would if they came far an interview to decide whether they were excepted at a school as prestigious as Hogwarts was.

What surprised Dumbledore was the fact that the boy looked like the long lost twin of James Potter, but Albus was happy he managed to keep the surprise off of his face. Now that he was thinking back on it though, he realized that he shouldn't have been too surprised by the similar appearance between the boys, especially since the Peverell family was absorbed into the Potter family.

The boys story also checked out, it was very likely that there was a surviving squib branch of the ancient Peverell family. It was also just as likely that the family had changed its name to hide its past history.

What Dumbledore found suspicious was the fact that the family was constantly moving around. Long enough to establish some sort of story, but not long enough for any solid evidence to be found about whether the family actually lived there. It all seemed too convenient to the aged wizard.

The story of how his parents had perished was quite sad, as Albus always held a soft spot in his heart for orphans. Obviously the boy had some temporary place to stay, but maybe Albus could talk him into staying with a proper wizarding family rather than living on his own. The boy was very polite which Albus liked, but he also had a silent confidence about himself which was always good to see in a young boy.

What intrigued him the most though, was the power that the boy seemed to ooze. Could he be who the prophecy was referring to? The Peverell's were an ancient house; and maybe the rumoured Hallows, that he and Gellert had spent so much time looking for, could be the ancient power. It truly was too early to tell, and it most likely was not the young orphaned boy anyways. Many 'powerful' wizards had fallen at the hands of so called 'weaker' wizards before.

However, it was the possibility that caught his eye, and what better way to keep an eye on the boy then to have him attend Hogwarts.

* * *

"I just received quite the interesting floo call," Dorea Potter said as she approached her husband, who was currently reading up on the latest quidditch scores.

Charlus grunted a response not really paying attention to what his wife was saying.

"It was from Minerva," she continued as she moved closer to her husband, "about the boy that James saw at Diagon Alley a few weeks ago," she finished as she grabbed the paper from Charlus and hit him over the head.

"Ow! Bloody crazy woman," Charlus muttered under his breath before he looked up and saw the dangerous look she had in her eyes. "I mean, forgive me my love, please tell me more," he responded as smoothly as possible.

Dorea just rolled her eyes at her husband's childish antics, "Where are James and Sirius?" she asked.

"Outside playing quidditch I'm pretty sure," he responded.

"Good!" Dorea quickly said before throwing up a few silencing charms.

"As much as I would love to do it right now Dorea, couldn't we wait until tonight," Charlus breathed out as his blood rushed up to his face.

"No you dolt! The charms weren't for that," she shot back as she swatted him over the head again, "but…tonight does sound like a good idea," she said with an impish smile.

This time the blood rushed to another part of his body, as Charlus started to think about the possibilities behind that sentence.

"Alright that's enough," Dorea called back, "we've gotten sidetracked from what I wanted to tell you. Minerva flooed me earlier about a young boy who visited the castle today looking to transfer to Hogwarts this year. Apparently Albus accepted him and he will be going into 5th year," she continued, "the boy's name is Harry Peverell."

"Wow!" Charlus then whistled out, "it's no surprise Albus took him really, he must find the boy just as interesting as we do."

"Yes, but not for the same reasons. While we are interested because he is family, Albus will probably be interested in where he popped up from and his ancestry."

"That is true, the old man probably accepted him only to keep an eye on the boy."

"Minerva also told me, that she could feel that the boy was quite powerful."

"Well that's no surprise to us, all wizards with the last name Peverell were known to be well endowed in terms of magical power."

"Be that as it may Charlus, that also means that Albus knows the boy is quite powerful."

"Ahhh, well, now that could lead to some problems," Charlus said as he poured himself a glass of fire whiskey.

"Should we tell James and Sirius to go after the boy?" Charlus continued.

"No, not yet, it would be too forced" Dorea responded. "They are family; I feel that it will work out on its own. But we must be prepared to intervene if Albus decides to meddle where he doesn't belong again."

"Alright, alright," Charlus sighed, "this better work out, love. I still think Sirius and James could befriend him quite easily. The boy is family, and I was hoping that we could have him over for Christmas this year," Charlus finished, as he downed the rest of his whiskey.

"I hope so too…" Dorea trailed off as she kissed her husband lightly on the lips. "Now I think it's time we make good on the offer I made earlier," Dorea teased as she pulled her very eager husband up the stairs and into the master bedroom.


	7. Chapter 7

For the young generation of wizards in Britain, September 1st is a joyous day. It is a time when young witches and wizards head back for another year of magical education, where they reconnect with friends, further their knowledge, cause more mischief, and are finally _legally_ allowed to use magic again.

Lily Evans woke up on September 1st with a smile on her face and a spring in her step, as she thought of returning to Hogwarts. She loved her family very much, even Petunia, but nothing made her happier than heading back to the world that she truly felt like she belonged in, especially after such a difficult summer.

At the beginning of summer Lily tried her best to reconnect with her older sister Petunia. But no matter how hard she tried, Petunia was too stubborn to change her views on the magical population. Lily understood why Petunia acted this, because deep down she resented Lily for the fact that she did not have any magic. Despite this, Lily still tried her best to bridge the gap between them. That was until Petunia took it too far only a few weeks into the summer holidays, when she called Lily a 'Freak' who had no place in the family anymore. Lily wouldn't admit it out loud, but she was heartbroken over what her sister said, and did her best to avoid Petunia for the rest of the summer, especially when she had her new boyfriend Vernon over.

Another reason for her difficult summer was the move away from her childhood friend Severus Snape. Lily saw that Severus was a troubled child, but that did not stop her from trying her best to maintain a friendship with him. He was a very sweet boy, who at the same time was capable of being very mean. He was an awkward child, maybe even a little creepy, which might have been one of the reasons why he was so misunderstood. This misunderstanding and the cruelty that he could occasionally show to people, was the reason why he was so disliked throughout Hogwarts. Despite her best efforts, Lily was sad to see that little by little Severus was slowly succumbing to the darker part of his soul.

The final reason for her difficult summer, would be the one and only James Potter. The daily owls she received from him always managed to upset her in some way, so much so that she started burning them all before even reading them. She thought he was as arrogant as they come, a boy who somehow managed to get top marks despite his obvious lack of effort. It also didn't help that he was in what seemed to be a never ending war with her friend Severus. Despite her obvious discontent with the boy, he was constantly belittling her by asking her out in the most ludicrous ways possible. It was almost like a joke to him, and she found it ridiculous that someone with so much potential would waste it by acting so childish. What infuriated her the most about the boy was that everyone else in the school, especially the girls, were enamoured by him, and it was only her who was immune to his charm.

"Lily!," her mother called from downstairs, shaking her from her thoughts, "It's time for breakfast! We need to leave soon if you want to catch the train on time."

"Coming mum!" she called back, as she quickly made her way downstairs.

"Here you are," her mother said as she passed Lily her favorite, tomato and eggs on toast, which she quickly devoured.

"You ready for another year of school Flower?" her father asked from the sitting room as he read the newspaper and watched an early match of football.

"Yes!" she enthusiastically responded, "I'm so excited to start learning some of the advanced charms and potions this year. But I'm also scared because it's our OWL year, and so many of the older years complained about how hard the OWL year was," Lily started to ramble.

"Well I'm sure you will do perfectly fine dear," her mother cut her off, before giving her a kiss on the top of her head.

"Well, I think it's time we head off," her father exclaimed as he got up off the couch and made his way to the front door.

"Is Tuney coming?" Lily asked hopefully as they started to pack her things into the car.

"Umm, er-no," her father replied as he shared a look with his wife, "she went out for breakfast with Vernon."

"I'm sure she'd wish you a good year at school," her mother added as she entered the car.

"More like she'd wish that I never leave school," Lily said under her breath.

The car ride to the train station went by quickly, with her parents discussing work and renovation ideas they had for the house, while Lily thought about the upcoming school year.

Once Lily exited the car at the station she was almost immediately attacked by a blur, with silky brown hair.

"Lils!" squealed the blur, "I've missed you so, so, so much!"

"I've missed you too Marls," Lily laughed as she tried to disentangle herself from her best friend.

"We need to get to the train now!" she practically yelled, "otherwise all the compartments will be full and we'll have to sit with boys who aren't cute," she said with a frown on her pretty face.

"Alright, alright, let's go," Lily gave in to her overly excited friend as she was practically dragged through the station. With one last look over her shoulder Lily waved goodbye to her parents, who both blew her a kiss in response.

"Whew! Finally," Marlene exclaimed as they boarded the Hogwarts Express. "Look, see the compartments are almost all full. Full, full, Slytherins, full, not cute," Marlene called out as they passed different compartments on the train, "not cute, firsties, full…oh wait this one's not full yet," Marlene stopped at a compartment found in the middle of the train.

Lily peered inside the compartment and saw the sleeping form of a boy, with his hood pulled over his head.

The two girls slipped in as quietly as they could and traded stories about their summer, trying their best to not wake him. After a while, there was a knock on their compartment door and they looked up to see a smiling Frank Longbottom with Alice on his arm.

"Oh look, isn't it the cutest prefect couple," Marlene called out as the two took a seat across from the sleeping boy. "I swear they do everything together Lils, even make prefects together!" she added.

Lily couldn't help but smile at this, because she was the reason they were prefects together. Professor McGonagall sent her the prefects badge initially, but Lily felt like she couldn't handle being a prefect while doing as well as she wanted to on her OWLs. Lily decided that if she was given the badge again in 6th year, then she would take it.

"Well they are the cutest couple Hogwarts has ever seen," Lily responded with a giggle.

"Aweee you guys are making me blush," Frank cut in hoping to end the teasing comments, "do you guys know who the sleeping bloke here is?" Frank asked pointing at the curled up boy.

"No idea," Marlene said with a mischievous smile, "you want me to wake him up and ask?" she joked while pulling out her wand.

"NO!" the other three all yelled, causing the boy to stir in his sleep.

"Geez Marlene," Alice said with an innocent smile, "I forgot how evil you could be."

"Oh come one, that was nothing," she giggled back at her blonde friend. "Now this is something," Marlene responded as she sent a stinging hex at the sleeping boys backside.

"Ow! What in the bloody hell!" the sleeping boy yelled out as he was woken suddenly.

As the hood fell off revealing his face, everyone in the compartment froze for a second. The moment of silence was suddenly broken by a very irate redhead, "JAMES POTTER! Who do you think you are sneaking into this cabin and pretending to be asleep while me and Marlene were having a private conversation! I thought maybe you would change over the summer, but ohhh no you are just the same as…mmphh," her rant was suddenly cut off by the strong hand of Frank Longbottom covering her mouth.

"Wow Lils! Tell us how you really feel," Marlene laughed out. "Sorry about that," she apologized to the James Potter look-a-like, "Frank here just wanted to know who you are."

"Oh, well-umm, my name his Harry Peverell," he introduced himself, as he was still slightly overwhelmed by the sudden wake up.

"Peverell huh," Frank thought to himself for a second, "that's quite an ancient family. Why are you only coming here now?" he asked curiously.

"Well I'm a transfer student new for this year, I grew up travelling around the Americas and only returned back home to England a couple of months ago," Harry replied.

"Americas… that's pretty cool" Alice exclaimed, "I'm Alice by the way, this is my boyfriend Frank, the one who woke you up is Marlene, and the angry redhead over there is Lily," she said as she introduced everybody in the compartment.

Harry seemed to tense up at the name Lily and something flashed through his eyes. Lily noticed this and tried her best to reverse the damage that she had already done, "I am so, so, so, soooo sorry," she apologized trying to get over her own mortification, "you must think I am a complete nutcase. I just thought you were somebody else," she tried to explain.

"Ya, ya, James Potter," Harry responded with smile, "I've been told that I look like him."

"I think that's a bit of an understatement," Frank chuckled, "James is one of my best mates, and it's scary how much you look like him."

"Definitely," Marlene added while checking out Harry, "I don't know what the female population of the school is going to do now that there are two of them."

This caused Harry to turn bright red, "Uhh, well ermm ummm, uh-th-thanks," he managed to bumble out.

"Don't mention it," Marlene responded with a wink.

Suddenly there was knock on the compartment door that drew everyone's attention. As the door slid open it revealed the very pale form of Severus Snape, who looked just as out of place as ever.

"Hi Sev," Lily greeted him.

"Hi Lily, how was your summer? I missed you. Especially since you moved away, why did you do that?" Severus started while completely ignoring everyone else in the cabin, "Why didn't I see you in the prefect's cabin? I thought you would be in there. Nobody deserved to be prefect over you," Snape continued to ramble on.

"So I was…" Snape suddenly stopped as his eyes came across Harry, "What are you doing sitting with James Potter!" he yelled out, and before anybody could stop him he continued, "so much for him being a bullying toe rag! I guess maybe you really are in love with him like everyone else in the school! You move away from me in the summer and now you think you're so much better than I am!" as Snape continued to yell his voice got higher and higher in pitch.

"HOW DARE YOU DO THIS TO ME!" Snape screamed as his voice hit its peak. Suddenly he turned around and stormed away from their compartment.

There was a stunned silence held between the 5th year students, until it was broken by Harry, "Wow! … That's twice I've been yelled at today when it wasn't even my fault," Harry said dryly.

This caused everyone to laugh nervously, as there really wasn't any other reaction that would have been appropriate for the situation.

"I wouldn't worry about it too much," Frank added. "The only people who would yell at James like that are the Slytherins, Snape especially, and Lily."

"And you've already ticked two of those off the list," Alice said with a giggle.

"We also don't really count Lily," Marlene threw in her own opinion, "we are all pretty sure that she secretly loves James, and that she uses violence and yelling as her way of expressing it to him."

There was the sound of running footsteps down the corridor, as suddenly the compartment door slid open again to reveal a very excited Sirius Black.

"Word on the train is that Snivellus was screaming here not too long ago, so I decided to find out who started the party without me," he said with a wide grin on his face.

"Oh Sirius, you know we would never start a party without you, especially if it involves Snape," Marlene answered back while fluttering her eyelids at him.

"Ah Marlene, beautiful as ever," Sirius said while kissing her hand, "Lily-flower oh how I've missed you," Sirius said causing Lily to almost growl at the nickname he gave her, "Mr. and Mrs. Longbottom, I'm terribly sorry that I missed the wedding," Sirius greeted them with a cheeky bow causing the young couple to blush.

As Sirius' gaze fell on Harry, his eyes almost bulged out of his head, which caused Harry to role his eyes. "Oi Prongs! I've found your twin!" Sirius leaned into the corridor and called down the train.

"I should congratulate you," Sirius said as he turned back to Harry, "you had Prongs thinking about you the rest of the day when we got back from Diagon Alley. The only other person who has ever done that to him is Evans over here."

This caused Harry to laugh, as well as everyone else in the compartment.

"Are you saying that you've met before?" Lily asked trying to understand what was going on.

"Maybe, I don't know what you would consider it," Sirius said while scratching his head, "he made eye-contact with James a few weeks ago before sprinting off in the other direction."

This caused Harry to go pink and look down at the ground in embarrassment, for how poorly he handled that situation.

A few seconds later, a rather red-faced James Potter came running into the compartment. As he was trying catch his breath, James' gaze fell on Lily, "Oh, hi Evans, you are looking just as beautiful and fiery as always," he breathed out while ruffling the back of his hair.

"Potter," she responded curtly, while mostly ignoring him.

"Come on Lily," James whined, "I haven't seen you all summer and you're already mad at me. I haven't even asked you out yet."

"Ya, that's right," Sirius cut in, "he was gonna do it at the end of the train ride, I think it had something to do with charming the train whistle," he finished causing everyone but Lily and James to laugh.

"Shut up Pads! You ruined the surprise, I might as well just do it right no-," James was cut off by the death glare that Lily sent him, "err later," he corrected.

"I wouldn't push her anymore," Frank warned, "she's already yelled about you once today."

"It was really funny too, especially since she thought she was yelling at you," Alice added with a giggle, causing Lily to go red from embarrassment.

"You know James…you are the only one who manages to get her so hot and bothered," Marlene teased.

A crooked grin spread across his face at hearing this, just as he remembered why he came over to the compartment in the first place. "As much as I would like to stand here and think of Evans being all hot and bothered," James stated, causing a cute frown to cross Lily's face, "I did get called over here for a reason."

"Ya, before he saw Evans and lost all sense of reality again," Sirius whispered to Marlene causing her to laugh.

James turned around, ignoring the laughing Sirius and Marlene, and came face to face with the boy who looked so much like him. "Hi, umm, I'm James Potter," he started out nervously not really knowing what to say, "I'm guessing you're Harry Peverell." James noticed how Harry tensed up at the fact he already knew his name, "well, erm, after I saw you at Diagon Alley I asked my parents about you to see if they knew who you were," James added trying to explain why he knew.

"Oh umm, I guess that makes sense," Harry said, looking as if he was still trying to figure out how James found out his name.

"My parents were talking about you at home, and because you looked so much like a Potter they figured that you must have been a Peverell, so they started asking around about you," he continued to explain. "I guess what I'm trying to say is, welcome to the family!" James finished as he started to ruffle his hair again.

At the word 'family' Harry's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree, and almost started glowing in happiness. "Thank you…" Harry managed to croak out before he stood up and went to embrace James.

James stood there slightly shocked at how much his words seemed to affect Harry, before he returned the hug.

Everyone else in the cabin sat there and looked at the two boys with smiles on their faces, as a touching moment seemed to pass between the boys.

Lily was especially taken back by the display, as she never realized that James could be so sweet. It was a side of James Potter that she had never seen before, a compassionate and loving side; a side that she realized she liked quite a bit. Those thoughts were quickly thrown out of her head as she remembered the other side of James Potter that she really did not like.

What she didn't realize was that a seed was planted in her mind at that moment, a seed that had the opportunity to grow or die.

"Alright, well me and Padfoot here have got to head back to the Marauders compartment," James announced as the moment had passed, "we need to make sure Remus hasn't entered a coma from book overload and that Peter hasn't eaten too much chocolate again."

"Oh Merlin," Sirius laughed out as the memory came back to him, "I had to carry him all the way to the castle and to the bathrooms because he didn't trust himself to walk."

As the laughter in the cabin died down, Sirius and James made there exit and rest of the 5th years started up their own conversations. The only one who didn't participate was Harry, as he simply sat and looked out the window in silence with a smile that wouldn't leave his face.


	8. Chapter 8

September 1st was not a good day for the lovely Bellatrix Black. She was rather excited about returning to Hogwarts, not that she would let anyone know that, but it was everything else that came with returning to Hogwarts that had her in such a bad mood.

Her day started out poorly when her parents decided to wake her two hours before her other sisters for a talk. This 'talk' consisted of Bellatrix being reminded of her duties when representing the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black in the presence of heirs and other influential people. The talk wasn't unreasonable in Bellatrix's opinion as she expected her parents to remind her of her duties, however she was not expecting what came next. Her mother and father went into an in depth discussion of how a proper lady should behave in the presence of a young man who was attempting to court her, and followed that with stories of their own courting experiences.

This is what led to a rather irritated Bellatrix make her way towards the Hogwarts express, where she was met by Rodolphus Lestrange. The smug look on his face and how quickly he latched onto her arm before parading her throughout the station and train, only made her mood worse.

Throughout the train ride Bellatrix tried her best to fend off the unwanted advances of Rodolphus without breaking decorum or offending him. She was walking a fine line in regards to her treatment of Rodolphus, as she couldn't disrespect him in any way since her parents had agreed to the terms that the Lestrange family had set in their request. Any slight that Bellatrix made towards Rodolphus would bring shame upon her family, and that was something she was looking to avoid. Seeing the punishments that her cousin Sirius had to go through while growing up, Bellatrix knew that it was best to do whatever her family requested of her. The bravery and stupidity that her cousin showed in defying his family for his own beliefs was one thing she greatly respected about him. It was one thing that Bellatrix knew she would never be able to do.

As the conversation in the compartment shifted to politics, Bellatrix started get lost in her thoughts of what she wished to accomplish this year. It was her OWL year this year, which meant that they were now going to study more advanced magic. Bellatrix already knew some more advanced magic through her own self-study in the Black Family Library, but that did not mean she wasn't pleased to be learning some more. The thing that excited her the most was the partial access to the Restricted Section that was given to all OWL students. She would finally have access to tomes that contained more dark and powerful spells, and be able to push the boundaries of her magical ability.

Bellatrix was brought out of her thoughts as she felt Rodolphus' hand travel up her inner thigh, towards a place she would rather die than have him touch. She quickly excused herself to the washroom in order to get away from the brute, just as he started boasting about some powerful lord who came to visit his father over the summer.

As Bellatrix walked through the train she decided to check the compartments to see if she could find the mysterious James Potter look-a-like. That was until she came upon her classmate Severus Snape, who was screaming at the aforementioned man. Not wanting to get involved in the James Potter/Severus Snape feud, Bellatrix quickly made her way back to her compartment and tried her best to ignore Rodolphus for the rest of the train ride.

"Out of my way idiots! Move!" Bellatrix called out sharply, carving her way through the crowd coming off of the train, and moving towards the carriages. One of the perks of being the most intimidating witch in the castle was people tended to do to what you say.

"Oh thank Merlin!" Bellatrix sighed as she climbed into the first carriage by herself.

"Trying to escape me Bella?" came the sickening voice of Rodolphus Lestrange from a few feet away. He did sound slightly out of breath, after running through the crowds in order to catch Bellatrix, but managed to cover it up pretty well.

Bellatrix cringed at the sound of his voice. To be completely honest, she was trying to get away from him. By the end of the train ride she was struggling to keep all of her anger in check, and it was not going to be pretty if she lost control.

"Or were you just trying to play hard to get?" he continued.

Bellatrix ignored him, and dug her fingers into her palm trying to replace some of her anger with pain.

"Bella, Bella, Bella," he said as he climbed into the carriage alongside Lucius Malfoy, and his brother Rabastan, "you know that you are meant to be _my_ escort today."

"Yes, and I did sit in the same compartment as you on the train ride here did I not?" she responded in a cool tone.

"How could I not remember," he said with a predatory grin that made her feel quite violated, "but I think you are forgetting the part about escorting me on the way to the castle as well."

Bellatrix had forgotten that part of the deal, and the hope of having some quiet time to herself all but vanished.

"Rodolphus, I feel dreadfully sorry for you," cut in the silky voice of Lucius Malfoy, "it seems you will have your work cut out for you in training this one, once she becomes yours. No lady should ever act in such a way, especially in front of her future husband."

"Excuse me." Bellatrix's voice cut in sharply, causing all three of the boys to flinch.

"Oh come on Bella, it's not like you don't already know that I'm going to be with you," Rodolphus said trying to gain the upper hand again.

"It seems that what you know and what I know are very different things," Bellatrix responded, leaving them to interpret her statement however they please.

"What's that supposed to mean!" Rabastan said harshly, "You are going to be a Lestrange woman, and you are going to like it!"

"Now, now Rabastan," his brother said while patting him on the back to calm him, "I'm sure deep down beautiful Bella is excited about the prospect of joining our family, especially with father's new acquaintance."

"Oh yes, your father and his new best friend this all powerful lord," Bellatrix replied sarcastically.

"Of course, he is after all the next big thing. He is going to lead us into a new pure blood golden age," Rodolphus stated proudly, "I'm sure you won't be speaking this way when you finally meet him."

"He truly is quite remarkable," Lucius drawled, "There is no question that he will be success, he did come to the Malfoy family first after all," he added ignoring the jealous glares that come from the Lestrange brothers.

"Obviously he is not that important, otherwise he would have approached the Black family first," Bella dismissed with a wave of her hand, "or maybe he was too intimidated to approach us," she laughed.

"How dare you!" screamed Rabastan as the other two boys gasped.

Bellatrix tilted her head and met Rabastan's murderous gaze, without flinching, and gave him a wink.

"That is a very dangerous attitude to have Bella," Rodolphus warned, "but it won't matter, as we will both be in his favor the moment our contract is signed," he finished with an ugly grin that Bellatrix wanted to slap off of his face.

"Oh... well it seems that we're at the castle already," Bellatrix said in a cheerful tone, "such a shame to have this wonderful conversation cut short. Bye Ruddy, Dolphy, and Lucy!" she called out as she hopped out of the carriage and made her way to the great hall.

Knowing that she left behind three irritated boys, Bellatrix chose to sit at the far end of the Slytherin table in the hopes that they wouldn't seek her out again.

"Bella!" called out an excited Narcissa, who quickly ran over to where Bellatrix was sitting.

"Hi Cissy, I see that you brought over one of your friends," Bellatrix stated.

"Yeah! This is my best friend Aurora," Narcissa said while pushing her nervous friend forward.

"Oh, I see. Well Miss Sinistra, I hope Narcissa doesn't copy your astronomy homework too often this year," Bellatrix said giving Narcissa a glare.

Whatever the pretty little brunette was going to say, was cut off by a squealing Narcissa, "look the Marauders are here!" This caused the two friends to blush heavily and start a whispered conversation, that was filled with a lot of giggles.

"I see Cissy is having a good start of the year," came the amused voice of Andromeda as she took a seat across from Bellatrix.

"Yes, well it seems that she isn't the only one who has boys on her mind," Bellatrix replied coolly.

This caused a hint of color to rise in Andromeda's cheeks. "I don't know what you are talking about," she responded while not meeting Bellatrix's gaze.

"Was I wrong in assuming that a certain brown haired Hufflepuff boy is the cause of the wrinkles around the collar of your robes, or that he didn't dishevel your usually immaculate hair," Bellatrix pointed out.

This time a noticeable blush rose in Andromeda's cheeks. "I think not," Bellatrix concluded

"Listen, I know you don't like it…or him, or whatever you think about us. But I really do care about him…I think I might love him," Andromeda confessed.

"So it's love now?" Bellatrix questioned sharply. "Andi, he is a muggleborn..."

"And what does that have to do with anything," she cut back just a sharply, "he is just as capable as any other wizard here."

"What will our parents think? What will the rest of the family think? _Toujours Pur_ Andi, you know what the consequences are."

"Damn the consequences Bella! Sometimes people follow their heart and do what they think is right for themselves. It is our own life, not our family's."

"I will keep it quiet just as I always do Andi. You will always be my sister, and as long as you are happy so am I," Bellatrix said in an oddly detached tone.

Before Andromeda could reply, they were interrupted by the powerful voice of their esteemed headmaster. "Good Evening students and welcome back to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for another magical year. I am truly happy to see all of the returning faces and hope you all had a comfortable journey. Professor McGonagall I believe it is now time for our first years to be sorted."

Bellatrix didn't really pay attention to the sorting, mostly because she just didn't care. As a fifth year student, who wasn't a prefect, she wouldn't be interacting with many of the younger students. The only reason that she clapped for the new Slytherin members, was because it was a house policy.

Just as the sorting ended and the anticipation for the feast was beginning to rise, Dumbledore spoke again, "I would first like to officially welcome all first years to Hogwarts, and wish them all good luck for the coming year. Before the feast begins, there is one more bit of business that needs to be taken care of," Dumbledore chuckled at the moans and protests from the famished students. "There is one more student who needs to be sorted," he continued as whispers started to break out around the hall, "a transfer student to be exact. I would like to welcome Harry Peverell to Hogwarts, who has returned home to England, after growing up in the Americas."

With that, the door that led to the antechamber opened, and out walked a messy haired boy with sparkling green eyes. Bellatrix froze at the sight of the mysterious boy from Diagon Alley, and watched as he slowly made his way to the sorting hat. She vaguely heard Narcissa and Aurora gush over how cute the new boy was, as everyone's attention was focused on the boy. Her heart started pounding in anticipation as the whole hall went quiet when the hat was placed on his head.

* * *

Harry was met by Professor McGonagall at the front of the school, and was led away from those that he shared a carriage with.

"Mr. Peverell if you would follow me please," she stated as they entered the castle. "The headmaster has informed me that you will be sorted after the first years, just before the feast begins."

Not knowing what to say to that, Harry just nodded his head and followed McGonagall through the castle.

"I have no idea why Albus wants to make such a spectacle out of this," McGonagall said almost to herself.

"Umm Professor? Does the school take transfer students often?" Harry asked.

"No, not at all, they are quite rare. You are the first permanent transfer in about half a century," she responded raising an eyebrow at him.

"Oh um, wow. That is quite the honour I uh guess," Harry said feeling slightly uncomfortable. "Where do you think I will be sorted, Professor?" Harry asked suddenly, curious as to what McGonagall's opinion of him would be

"I am not the authority on sorting Mr. Peverell. There is a reason why I teach transfiguration, and do not handle the sorting," she said pursing her lips.

"Could you take a guess?"

"I try not to influence children before they go for their sorting. And I do not go around making foolish guesses Mr. Peverell," she added with a glare.

"An educated guess then?" Harry asked again with a cheeky smile.

"Come find me tomorrow, or when you have your first transfiguration lesson and I will let you know if my opinion was correct," she said with a sigh as she led him into the antechamber, "now wait here until the headmaster calls for you," she added before leaving the room.

Harry sat there smiling as he remembered how much fun it was to try and break down the stern façade that McGonagall put up. However, as time went on Harry became increasingly nervous. In a few moments Harry would be sorted again, but this time instead of being sorted into a house with equally nervous eleven year olds, he would be sorted into a house full of people who knew each other and already established friendships. It was something Harry wouldn't admit out loud, but Harry was afraid that he would become an outcast. He was afraid it would be like when he was growing up with the Dursley's, or when he went to elementary school, or second year when he was thought to be the Heir of Slytherin, or his fourth year when people thought he put his name in the goblet, or his fifth year when the ministry and Umbridge told everyone he was delusional. Despite being sent back in time and no longer being Harry Potter or The-Boy-Who-Lived, his past still weighed heavily down on him.

It was with these thoughts that Harry heard Dumbledore introduce him, and he made his way out into the great hall. As he made his way towards the sorting hat, an uneasy feeling fell over him as he never liked being the center of attention. He tried to keep his head down and ignore all the staring, but that was pretty much impossible, seeing that the entire population of the school was looking at him.

When he reached the stool with the sorting hat, he finally looked up at the students sitting at the different tables. He blushed heavily at the looks that some of the girls were sending him, and was taken aback from the many glares and calculating stares he received, especially from the Ravenclaws and Slytherins. His spirits were lifted when he saw the many encouraging smiles sent his way from the Hufflepuff's and the Gryffindor's that he met earlier on the train.

After scanning the hall, Harry took the hat and put it on his head. This time, instead of sliding down and covering his face, the hat fit snuggly on his head, just as it would have for Godric Gryffindor himself.

" _The perks of not being a scrawny bespectacled first year, wouldn't you say Harry James Potter…or should I say Harry Ignotus James Peverell,"_ Harry tensed at hearing this. _"Time travel is a very interesting thing is it not. But have no fear, I won't tell the old man anything. My secrets, which are also your secrets, are bound to Hogwarts herself,"_ the hat explained. _"Who would have thought Death was so sexy_ ," the hat said in a very creepy way, especially since it was coming from a hat.

" _Are you reading my mind?"_ Harry asked.

" _In a way yes, but not how you think. I can read all your thoughts, wishes, desires, and view your most precious and important memories. Only a master occlumens would have any hope of attempting to block me out, and let me tell you Peverell, you are no master."_

" _I taught myself this much in only a few weeks, say what you will but I am proud of myself,"_ Harry shot back in his mind.

" _Well I would advise you to work a bit harder, or to find someone to help teach you, if you want any chance of keeping an adequate legilimens out of your mind."_

" _Hey! I kept out Dumbledore when I was here for my meeting."_

" _You did not keep him out, for he did not even attempt to enter your mind. He simply grazed your surface thoughts, which you barely managed to protect might I add."_

" _As much as I would like to sit here and have you make fun of my occlumency skill..."_

" _Lack of skill…"_ the hat interrupted.

"… _yes…my lack of skill. I have noticed that even more people are staring at us now, because we have taken so long."_

" _Ah, yes, well you are one of the most interesting people I've had the pleasure of sorting and this is really the only time of year I get to talk to anyone. But I digress…now what house should you be placed in. I see that you are rather intelligent but definitely not Ravenclaw material…oh heavens no. Those study habits would have Rowena rolling in her grave! You are very loyal to those you consider your friends and family, and work quite hard when necessary…but not a Hufflepuff either. Very brave and bold, and you most certainly are reckless based off of your past. Yet you are quite resourceful and cunning when you need to be. I see it was down to these two houses the last time you were sorted…interesting, very interesting. You are on your way to greatness, and you're quite ambitious and daring if you plan on defeating this Lord Voldemort. Such an incredible destiny, and either house would provide you with its own set of advantages. If you are successful you will go down in history as a hero…well then… if the world will make you a hero, then it better be…"_

" _GRYFFINDOR_!"


	9. Chapter 9

The roar from the Gryffindor table was almost deafening, with most of the noise coming from James Potter and Sirius Black.

"Oi! Harry over here!" called out James as Harry was making his way towards the Gryffindor table.

James noticed that Harry seemed quite uncomfortable with all the attention being thrown his way. Harry's face was flushed and with each step that he took, his eyes seemed to dart around the table, almost as if he didn't know what to do next. James had a good gut-feeling about Harry, and his gut was something that had never led him astray. Except for the time his gut told him it was good idea to _try_ to prank Dumbledore's office, or the time his gut told him that flying in only a towel was a good idea, or all the times that his gut told him to ask out Lily, or…. James quickly realized that his gut wasn't as reliable as he had once thought. James didn't care though, Harry was _family_ , and James took care of family.

"Budge over Wormtail, make room for Harry I'm bringing him over," James stated, as he stood up and made his way over to Harry. Seeing the horrified look on Harry's face as the younger year girls were trying their best to get him to sit with them, made James stop short. It took almost all of his self-control not to leave Harry to the younger year vultures and start up a betting pool, on which one of the girls would be the first to unbutton her shirt and sit on Harry's lap. "I would get some pretty good odds though…" James muttered under his breath, but quickly shook that final thought out of his head as he grabbed Harry by the arm and dragged him back to the rest of the Marauders.

"What the hell happened to you?" Sirius asked Harry when they finally made it back.

"Third and fourth year vultures," James answered for Harry, seeing as Harry was still in a state of absolute shock.

Sirius barked out laugh, "Merlin, those girls are terrifying. Some of those birds are pretty fit, but even I've learned not to go anywhere near them when they're all together. You should've seen Moony when they all came to visit our compartment on the train. I think one of them offered to ride him harder than one of Hagrid's hippogriffs. No. Wait! She said she wanted the hippogriff to join in as well!"

"That's not funny Sirius! You know magical creatures like me better than most, it was a very disturbing proposition," Remus called out as he blushed heavily.

"I have to agree with Remus there Padfoot, that would be like McGonagall offering to sleep with you while in here cat animagus form," James shuddered with thought of that. Sirius on the other hand seemed to get a weird glint in his eye.

"Godric's balls Padfoot! You really are a sick bastard," James shouted just before he started to dry-heave.

"I have no idea what you guys are talking about," Sirius almost whimpered not meeting any of their eyes.

"Padfoot, we've roomed with you for four years now, we know the look you get in your eyes when you think of something that nobody has ever done before… in this case it's McGonagall as a cat that hasn't been _done_ before," Peter finally spoke up.

"Wormy!" Sirius gasped, "Even you're siding with them! I'm hurt that you think so lowly of me," he added while feigning heartache.

"It's not so much that they think lowly of you, Sirius. It's just the fact that they know you mate," called out Frank Longbottom as he joined the conversation from a little bit down the table.

"Oh Frankie! Great to see ya, you big momma's boy! I've never been able to figure out why you spend so much time with Alice, when you can spend time with someone much more beautiful… like me," Sirius responded while fluttering his eyelashes.

"Sorry mate, blokes do nothing for me. But if you're looking for that kind of thing, I've heard Severus is in need of a good snog."

This time it was Sirius' turn to dry-heave, causing the rest of the boys to burst out laughing.

"Alright you gits," James cut in trying to settle them down, "I wanted to introduce the rest of the guys to Harry here," James waved his hand over telling Harry to take a seat beside him. "Harry, you've already met Frank and this prat on the train," he said while pointing at Sirius, "this is Remus Lupin and here we have Peter Pettigrew," he introduced the boys respectively. James was certain that he heard a growl at the mention of Peter's name, but he dismissed it as someone's stomach making noises.

"Nice to meet you guys, I'm Harry, Harry Peverell," Harry introduced himself with a smile. "Erm, I don't want to cut this conversation short or anything, but I'm starving," he added while rubbing his stomach.

"Thank Merlin! I thought we'd never start eating!" Sirius responded as he grabbed a drumstick and started to suck all the meat off it.

Nothing quite beat the opening feast. The houselves would never admit it, but it seemed like they put extra effort into it, making sure it tasted better than any of the other meals. The extra magic and excitement in the air from the returning children, and the fact that the houselves were returning to full time work, seemed to give them just that little something extra. Nevertheless, the boys were thoroughly enjoying everything that the elves provided.

"Excuse me?" came a soft voice from the boys, causing them to raise their faces from their plates.

"Whgmga dgtho ymou wghant?" Sirius tried to ask while spitting out half a chicken leg and a couple spoonful's of potatoes.

"I think the idiot over there was trying to ask what it is you wanted?" Remus clarified politely.

"Oh," she laughed awkwardly, while trying wipe off a bit of potato that landed on her arm, "I actually came over here hoping to talk to Harry," she finished with a bit of color in her cheeks.

"Erm, uh sure what did you want?" Harry asked while turning around to face a tall attractive blonde with angular features, who looked quite familiar.

"I umm, just wanted to know if you enjoyed the book you bought from the bookstore a few weeks back."

"Uh-well, hmm what book?" Harry asked with a confused look on his face.

"You know, _The Tales of Beedle the Bard_ you bought it from me in Diagon Alley… for your girlfriend's brother I think you said," she explained as a small frown crossed her face when she mentioned his supposed girlfriend.

"Girlfriend! We never knew you were that kind of guy," Sirius cut in. "Maybe you can join Frankie in the, 'I'm tied down for life,' club."

"Yeah Harry, why don't you tell us all about your lovely girlfriend," James said with smirk, sensing Harry's discomfort over the topic.

"Well you see, umm-er-she-ah-n-no, we uh broke up," Harry said lamely.

"Oh well isn't that just a shame," James responded trying his best to hold in his laughter at Harry's terrible lie.

"I'm so, so, so sorry about that Harry," the blonde said with a fake compassionate smile, "if you ever need to talk about it I'm always available. I think it will be for the best in the long run though," she continued, "it just means that now you're available for bigger and better things," she finished with a small smile as color rose in her cheeks again.

"Bigger _and_ better Harry," both Sirius and James said at the same time, causing Harry to shift in his seat.

"My name is Emmeline Vance by the way," she added as she started to full on blush after what James and Sirius said.

"It's nice to meet you Emmeline," Harry managed to get out while starting to blush as he recalled the older Emmeline Vance from the Order of the Phoenix, who was _very_ attractive.

"I hope to see you around Harry!... And you can call me Emmy," she said as she quickly turned around and made her way to the end of the Gryffindor table.

Once Emmeline left Harry looked around at the Gryffindor boys he was sitting with, only to see looks of amusement on their faces and a few snickering at him after being put on the spot by the pretty girl.

"Bloody hell!" Harry muttered as he put his head in his hands, doing his best to repress the memory of yet another disastrous experience with a girl, and ignoring the Cho flashbacks he was having in his minds eye.

* * *

"Huh, Harry Peverell. They're an old ancient family aren't they?" Andromeda started as she piled food onto her plate.

"They were an Ancient and Most Noble House at one point, and the rumours are that they were absorbed into the Potter line at one point," responded Bellatrix.

"He certainly looks like a Potter doesn't he."

"Or…the Potter's just look like the Peverell's. Maybe the ancient magic of the Peverell family is dominant and that's what makes all the Potter's look the same."

"That is a possibility, just look at us Black women. We all have sharp features and regal beauty, and women envy our looks from all across the magical world…or so everyone says," Andromeda said in a mock haughty tone.

"Shame he went into Gryffindor," Bellatrix said offhandedly.

"And why is that?" questioned Andromeda.

"Well now there's no mystery to him. He's just another lion who doesn't think before acting. I'd bet 3 galleons that by the end of the month, he'll be fooling around with Sirius and the rest of the Marauders."

"I'm sure Cissy wouldn't mind that. You know what, I'd bet 5 galleons that by the end of next week Peverell will be her new favorite Marauder," Andromeda countered.

"I'm just excited to see how Severus is going to react now that there are two James Potter's running around," Bellatrix stated with a hint of mischief in her eyes.

"You do realize that Peverell is his own person, and not James' clone…" Andromeda said as she raised one of her perfectly sculpted eyebrows.

"Of course I do! But Severus won't," she countered causing both girls to break into laughter.

"Yes, well that boy has some issues," Andromeda started after she got control over herself, "I've never seen such a bigot who has a fascination with the Dark Arts, fall in love with a muggleborn."

"There's nothing wrong with the Dark Arts," Bellatrix said in a cool voice.

"Wh-wha-w-what!?" Andromeda stuttered with an incredulous look on her face.

"So much magic is classified as the Dark Arts or Dark Magic, when it truly is not. Blood adoptions, occlumency, legilimency, to name a few, are all banned by the ministry and classified as dark despite the fact that there is nothing inherently dark about them. There are tomes upon tomes of advanced magic that are labelled as dark just because the general population is too weak to learn and understand it. Obviously there are realms of magic that are evil and only the sickest of dark lords would dare go near them, but most of it is misrepresented. Not to mention how your intent when using it is the only thing that matters," Bellatrix finished slightly out of breath and red faced after her rant. It was something that she passionately believed in, especially since exploring the realms of magic was all that she wanted to do in life.

"You have been spending way too much time with Arcturus, Bella," Andromeda responded while trying to school her features after her un-lady-like reaction.

The sound of high-pitched giggling from beside the two sisters brought them out of their conversation. They both looked over to find two red-faced third year girls pointing across the great hall.

"Cissy, what are you two looking at?" Bellatrix asked her sister, "And you know it is very rude to point," she added with a glare.

"Emmeline Vance just went over to talk to Harry," she almost squealed, ignoring the disapproving looks he was receiving from both her sisters.

"Do you, d-do you think she likes him?" an excited Aurora managed to get out before giggling uncontrollably.

"She better not!" Narcissa shot out, "He's my new favorite Marauder, I don't want him taken up already," she almost whined.

With that, Andromeda turned to Bellatrix with a raised eyebrow and put out her hand, "Five galleons please."

"He's not even an official Marauder yet!" Bellatrix shot back.

"Doesn't matter in the slightest dear sister. All the matters is that in Cissy's adolescent mind, Harry Peverell just became her _new favorite Marauder_ ," she finished with a smug smile.

"I didn't even take your stupid bet," Bellatrix retorted indignantly.

"But you didn't deny the bet which is the most important part. Don't worry too much Bella, if he becomes an official Marauder and starts acting like a prat then you can win back three of those galleons."

"Bloody stupid rules," Bellatrix mumbled under her breath.

"What do you think is going on over there?" Andromeda asked nodding her head to where a large group of fifth through seventh year Slytherin males were speaking in hushed tones.

"Probably comparing broom lengths or something equally as disgusting," Bellatrix replied offhandedly not wanting to give much thought to the males in her house, "maybe they're trying to convince each other about how many veela they seduced over the summer."

"Be serious Bella!"

"I can't be, he's over there talking to Peverell right now," she responded sarcastically.

"I-ugh, I can't believe you just used one of his name-pun jokes," Andromeda said in a frustrated tone, "Hmph fine! As the eldest daughter I am calling forth a Black Family Discussion."

"Merlin, fine! What is so important that you're calling in a formal discussion," Bellatrix conceded as she turned and faced her older sister.

"I heard rumours on the train, rumours about some powerful Lord visiting several of the ancient families over the summer. Do you know anything about this?" Andromeda asked in a whisper.

"Well I heard Lestrange and Malfoy talking about some powerful Lord, but I just assumed that they were trying to get into some skirts," Bellatrix responded sceptically.

"Apparently they weren't lying this time. From what I heard on the train, he approached most of the traditionalist families and even some of the neutral families as well over the summer."

"That's weird Andi, if this Lord was approaching families over the summer why didn't he approach us?" Bellatrix questioned. "Everyone knows the power that the Black name has," she concluded.

"I found that interesting as well…" Andromeda thought out loud, "maybe he did approach us, but Arcturus decided not to tell us," she mused.

"I doubt that, there is no way mother, father, and Walburga could have kept this information to themselves. The moment they found out, they would have gone around bragging," Bellatrix stated dryly.

"The only other option is that he is afraid or weary of the power that our family has, which questions what this Lords motives are."

"Well if this Lord is calling for pureblood supremacy and the subjugation of all muggleborns I don't see why he wouldn't come knocking on our door straight away…" Bellatrix paused when she saw the hurt look on her sister's face, "I'm sorry Andi, but that's the way our family is. Being with your Hufflepuff boy toy might not be the best idea right now."

"I will NOT abandon Ted!" Andromeda harshly responded.

"I never said you would Andi," Bellatrix said with a sad look on her face, "but if there is any truth to what Lucius and Rodolphus were telling me, then your boyfriend might be in danger soon."

Hearing this, Andromeda spun around in her seat and searched along the Hufflepuff table for Ted. Andromeda seemed to relax when she made eye contact with her boyfriend, despite the fact he was not in any immediate danger.

Seeing how Andromeda reacted to her comment, Bellatrix knew that her sister would stand beside the muggleborn Hufflepuff no matter the consequences. "You might be in danger too Andi…" Bellatrix mumbled to herself, dreading what could possibly happen to her older sister.

"This is why it is imperative that we know what is going on Bella," Andromeda continued after checking on Ted.

"It's not as easy as it looks Andi. Sure, Lestrange and Malfoy can't shut their mouths to save their lives, but it is almost impossible to tell when they are actually telling the truth and not lying to feed their enormous egos."

"I was actually hoping I could count on you Bella," Andi started nervously, but seeing how her sister was about to cut her off angrily, she was forced to continue her explanation, "I know the last thing you want to do is spend any more time with Lestrange, but I think this is going to be big."

Bellatrix was ready snap at the mention of her spending more time with the Lestrange brothers. However, she just managed to control herself and listen to her sister, knowing through experience that Andromeda usually came up with reasonable plans.

"We both know that I have lost almost all of my credibility in Slytherin since I started seeing Ted, for him being both a muggleborn and a Hufflepuff," she said with a hint of disgust in her voice at the prejudice of her house. "It would be extremely suspicious if suddenly, I started trying to integrate myself back into the pureblood circles and become privy to their plans... which is where you come in," she continued giving Bellatrix a serious look.

"You want me to spy?" Bellatrix questioned with a hint of irritation in her voice.

"To put it bluntly yes. But if you think about it from a neutral point of view, it makes a lot of sense," Andromeda explained. "Your reputation throughout the school, and the fact that you pay no attention to the muggleborn has you looked upon favourably by many of the purebloods. You occasionally still come into contact with various people in the pureblood circles, and Rodolphus still has his eyes set on that contract between the two of you."

Bellatrix let out a growl at the mention of the contract with Rodolphus, almost causing Andromeda to pause. However, she continued on, knowing that she needed to go a little further if she wanted to sell Bellatrix on her idea.

"It would not look suspicious at all if you all of a sudden were interested in integrating yourself into the pureblood politics. People would think that you finally came to your senses, and realized how much money and power you could gain by joining them. This really is the best way for us to know what we are facing," she concluded.

Bellatrix sighed heavily, knowing that her sister was right, "I suppose this is important enough to keep an eye on… for now."

"Of course Bella!" Andromeda said sounding slightly relieved, "Consider it simply gathering information at this point."

"Gathering information does sound much better than spying," Bellatrix chuckled to herself.

"For all we know, this could simply be a rally for a pureblood political move," Andromeda said, before her face took on a dark look, "Bella, if it turns out to be something dangerous I want you out of there. I will not have my sister hurt due to our society's idiotic beliefs on blood purity."

"You don't think I can take care of myself?" Bellatrix huffed.

"No I know what you can do, I'm simply worried about what they would do or how far they would go to obtain your services."

"And what makes you think I wouldn't end up joining on my own free will?"

"The fact that if you did we would be on opposite sides, and I fear the day that I no longer have my sister by my side."

The two sisters simply stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. A myriad of emotions passed through the pair of violet and grey eyes as they bore into each other. Both of them silently prayed that their bond of sisterhood would never be put into that situation.

"And what of our family, if the worst comes to pass?" Bellatrix asked breaking the silence.

"That is why I want to obtain as much information as possible right now. I love our family, despite most of the beliefs that certain members hold, and I do not want our family to be torn apart. However, I know that if I ever have to make a choice, I will always choose my own beliefs over being forced into something I want no part of. I only hope you will make the correct choice as well Bella."

Bellatrix simply just nodded her head in response, not wanting to think of being put into a situation where she would have to go against her family's wishes.

"Just look over there," Andromeda continued, nodding her head to their youngest sister, "I want to be prepared for Cissy. Look at how she's smiling right now, the pure joy of being a child with not a care in the world. She is untouched by the realities of life, and I want to keep it that way for as long as possible."

"Good night Bella," Andromeda said after a few moments of silence, and stood to leave the great hall.

Bellatrix continued to sit in silence after her older sister left the table, and began observing her blonde sibling. Just like before, Narcissa was giggling, laughing, whispering, and blushing alongside her best friend Aurora. It was the perfect picture of childhood innocence; and with that thought, Bellatrix came to an important realization. She would do anything for her sisters.

 **AN**

 _ **I just wanted to address a few of the reviews that have kindly been given:**_

 ** _House Placement: I cannot put into words the internal struggle that I went through when deciding what house to put Harry into. I went back and forth between Slytherin and Gryffindor probably 100 times. I could have spent the rest of my life debating with myself over where to place Harry, seeing as there is equal merit in putting him in either house. They both have their own advantages and I considered how those advantages would play out through the rest of the story. In the end I found that putting Harry in Slytherin might have taken away some of the important things I have planned for Bellatrix, and by putting him in Gryffindor I can have the best of both worlds (kinda). There are other reasons why he was placed in Gryffindor that you all_** ** _will find out about in due time (one of which is hinted at by the sorting hat)._**

 ** _Ages/Family: I changed around the ages of the Black sisters and a few other characters to better fit my story. I also flipped the roles of James' family by making Dorea and Charles his parents, and Euphemia and Fleamont are distant relatives. Also, despite Harry being in 5th year he is the same age as the kids in 6th year (he's repeating 5th year because he didn't have any school documents when he met Dumbledore)._**

 ** _Marauders: I saw that a few of you noticed that the Marauders have their nicknames despite the fact they haven't achieved the transformations yet. There is a reason for this. The boys have discovered their forms already (in 4th year) which is how they came up with the nicknames, and now all that is left is for them to complete the transformation._**

 ** _Thank you for leaving your reviews, feel free to leave some more._**


	10. Chapter 10

A flash of green, followed by an eerie silence, only to be broken by the sound of even footsteps echoing throughout Potter Manor. A tall figure dressed completely in black, from their dragon hide boots to the black sash tying their silver hair back, confidently navigated their way to the main staircase of the manor.

"Charlus! Get your old arse down here, we need to talk! NOW!" the figure called out in a demanding voice, knowing that their _sonorous_ charm was enough to wake the sleeping Potter's.

It was only a few minutes later that a tired Dorea Potter made her way down the staircase dressed in an expensive silk night dress. "Arcturus, dear brother, as good as it is to see you, I have to ask why you have woken us up at two in the morning?"

"Dorea!" Arcturus called out softly, "I apologize for disturbing your sleep, but this is a discussion that cannot wait. Something has recently come to my attention and I find that it would be best to discuss this while it is still fresh in my mind."

"Well whatever this is, it must be quite serious if it has gotten you so worked up," Dorea observed before yawning and rubbing her eyes in order to wake herself up.

Arcturus looked upon his slightly disheveled sister with fondness. Dorea was one of the very few people in the world who could break through his icy façade. All it took was one look from his little sister, and he would melt like a Fortescue ice cream in the heat of July. To the world Arcturus was the formidable Lord Black, a man who no one ever dared to cross, and a man with power and influence that stretched far beyond the shores of Magical Britain. There were very few who knew the man behind the mask, and they consisted of his baby sisters Dorea and Cassiopeia, his dearly departed wife Melania, and his brother in arms Charlus.

With the thought of Charlus, Arcturus looked back at his sister and asked, "Where's your idiot of a husband?"

Dorea fought back a smile and checked the top of the staircase before answering, "I had to put a timed locking charm on our bedroom door after I left, because I believe he said, 'I'm going to curse the bloody prick so bad that he'll need to use a cane for the rest of his life like Malfoy, for waking me up at such an ungodly hour,'."

"Yeah, and I still might! It depends on whether or not this conversation is as important as he's making it out to be," Charlus retorted as he made his way down the staircase in a night robe that matched Dorea's.

Arcturus could not help but smirk at the matching couple, knowing full well that it was Dorea's idea to buy the matching clothing and Charlus was too afraid to refuse to wear it.

"Despite the fact I'm still angry at you Arcturus, it's always good to see you brother," Charlus continued as he approached Arcturus with a big smile on his face and pulled him into a hug.

"It is always good to see you too Charlus," Arcturus responded as the corners of his lips quirked upwards into a small smile, "unfortunately this is not a social call, and there is some worrying news that I have come across."

A serious look immediately came across all of their faces, and Dorea led them into a small study that came off of one of the main halls in the manor.

"What is it Arcturus?" Charlus immediately asked as they sat, with Dorea beside her husband and Arcturus sitting across the couple.

"I had a meeting with Lord Whitehall this evening about some of the money he owes me for the investment I made in his potion distributing company, and for the protection of some of his assets," Arcturus began, "the meeting went as usual with him planning on paying me back next week, and him expressing his worry of disappearing shipments and workers gone missing in the Mediterranean area. The man has a promising business, but he really is a bit daft," he added.

This got a laugh out of both Charlus and Dorea. "As interesting as his business is, I don't see what the issue is here Arcturus?" Charlus questioned.

"The interesting bit is what came after," Arcturus continued, "at the end of our meeting, the idiot had too much of the cheap fire whiskey I leave around, and he started bumbling his thanks to me. Just as he was about to leave he started prattling on about how his future was looking bright and how some 'influential' lord was looking to support his business. Naturally I asked who it was, to see what type of competition I would have."

"And what did he say to that?"

"He said he didn't know who."

"That makes no sense, how could he not know who?" Dorea asked with a confused look on her face.

"That's what I told the prick, he told me, 'you know who,' as if I would know what he was talking about. I told him to stop being a vague moron, and he told me that this unnamed lord came to his home over the summer and expressed interest in a, 'promising business run by a pureblood,' and how he would like his support in future endeavors."

"That is…interesting," Charlus pondered to himself.

"Indeed. I quickly sent Lord Whitehall on his way, and asked my various sources to look into this unknown lord."

"And what did they find?" prodded Dorea as she unconsciously moved to sit at the edge of her seat.

"Nothing good," Arcturus answered with a shake of his head. "Apparently this lord visited many of the traditionalist and neutral pureblood families over the summer. What my sources were able to find in the few hours that they were out, was that he expressed interest in the various businesses they owned and was looking for their support in the future. He told many of the families to keep his visit private as he was only looking to speak to 'influential' and 'promising' families, and even managed to get some of them to swear an oath of secrecy."

"Fuck…" Charlus muttered under his breath as he summoned a glass of whiskey, "did your sources manage to find what his actual goals are or who exactly he was meeting with?"

"I'll keep my sources looking into it, but they didn't find much. It looks like many of the families did keep this meeting private for whatever reason, and none are willing to speak about the visit. The only information we have is because my sources were able to find a few notes about this lord requesting the meeting that weren't destroyed, and the whispers about some man who has been enquiring into the status of various different pureblood businesses and organizations."

"What is the matter love?" Dorea whispered into her husband's ear as she rubbed soothing circles on his back.

"The fucking matter is we might have another dark lord upstart," Arcturus grounded out through his teeth as he poured himself a glass of whiskey as well.

Charlus stiffened at this, before he looked up at his friend, "Are you sure about this Arcturus? Perhaps he is looking to start a new pureblood political movement, maybe he's looking to revive the Dark faction, or he might be a foreign pureblood looking to heavily invest in our businesses?" he added getting more and more desperate with each explanation.

"It is possible Charlus, but we can't rule out the possibility especially when some of the signs are there."

"How could it be such a problem, if barely anybody knows the man. We don't even know if he has support," Dorea stated.

"That's what makes him so much more dangerous if he indeed is a dark lord, love. We currently don't know who is supporting him, who is against him, what his goals are, what he is capable of; right now he is working in the shadows."

"And the shadows are every dark lords best friend…" Arcturus mumbled to himself as he started to fall back into his memories of the war against Grindelwald.

"What else did your sources find?" Dorea's voice broke Arcturus out of his past.

"Well, they did find that he did not approach either of us, the Greengrass family, the Longbottom's, the Bones', or the Bode's…"

"The family's that led the British fight against Grindelwald…" Charlus spoke slowly as if he was figuring out a puzzle, "I fear that you are right Arcturus," he concluded.

"That is the main reason I believe he is an up and coming dark lord, he's been trying is best to keep his existence away from the powerful families who know all too well what another dark lord would cost the Wizarding World."

"It seems that the man is quite crafty, which is very worrying," pondered Charlus. "I bet even the old bastard Dumbledore in all his holiness doesn't know of this man's existence."

"Which is the one good thing that I've learnt today," Arcturus scoffed, "the moment that fruity prick gets wind of this shit, everything will only get much more complicated."

"How does James feel about the old man?" Arcturus continued.

"He has never shown any distaste towards his headmaster, but he does know our attitude towards him," Dorea answered.

"And what of Sirius?"

"You could always ask your grandson yourself."

A look of sadness quickly flashed across his eyes before it disappeared, "The boy has shown time and time again that he wants nothing to do with me or his family. He fails to acknowledge the importance of blood, and his stubbornness prevents any attempt to speak with him."

Dorea looked at her brother with understanding, she knew firsthand the amount of dislike Sirius held towards their family. "Sirius is like James," she eventually responded.

"And what of this new boy, Peverell?"

"We know very little of the boy, and were hoping that James and Sirius would bring him home for the holidays."

"Well, the sooner we speak to them the better, because the last thing we need is to have to deal with Dumbledore's manipulations on top of a rising dark idiot."

"If we manage to get the three boys here over the holidays, I will invite you over to speak to them."

"That sounds agreeable. Hopefully this is all for nought, and we are all just being paranoid."

"I will start using my own connections to try and gather more information, Arcturus let me know if your sources find anything of note." Charlus instructed.

"Without a doubt Charlus. If worse comes too worse, we've already fought one dark army together, why not fight another eh?"

Charlus chuckled at his friend's dark humour, "Well, thanks to your information, at least this time we'll know if it's coming ahead of time."

"Don't thank me, thank that buffoon Whitehall for being a closet alcoholic who can't keep his lips shut," he shot back with a wry smile. "It was lovely to see you again Dorea, Charlus," Arcturus continued as he kissed his sister on the cheek, "but I think it would be best to sleep on this and wait to see if any new information can be dug up."

With that, Arcturus swiftly returned home through the floo, leaving behind a worried Dorea, and a man who was praying to whatever gods were listening that he would not have to live through the horrors of another war.

* * *

"Hey, Peverell! Mind if I take a seat here?"

"Sure Frank, wasn't saving the seat for anybody," Harry called back moving his bag over to make some more room for Frank.

"You sure? I wouldn't be surprised if you were saving it for some bird," he teased.

"Ughhhh!" Harry moaned as he smacked his head against his desk, "Can you guys just give it up already. Why can't you and the four idiots just leave me alone," he whined.

"Well it's not every day that Emmeline Vance just comes up to a guy and is basically just begging to be asked out to Hogsmeade."

"Why is she such a big deal? I mean sure she's fit and all…"

"The big deal is that she's arguably the most attractive witch in the school, _and_ she's a seventh year, _and_ she gave you permission to call her Emmy!" he exclaimed.

"Who's arguably the most attractive witch, Franky?" came the sweet voice of Alice from behind them.

"Oh, ummm-ugh nobody, love, I only have my eyes on you," Frank winked at his girlfriend.

"Good answer sweetie," she responded with a pat on his cheek, before she made her way to the front of the classroom putting an extra sway in her hips.

Harry burst out laughing, until Frank hit him over the head, "Ow! That bloody hurt!" he complained. "Why aren't you sitting with her?"

"She likes to sit with her friend Megan Jones in transfiguration. Apparently Megan's family comes from a long line of transfiguration masters, and she sits with Megan to get help with her theory."

"You not good enough to help her?"

"Hmm, well, I'm good enough to get an EE on the OWLs this year, but Alice struggles with the theory a little, which is why she gets help from Megan. She wants to be an auror, so she needs the extra bit of help that I can't give."

Harry remembered that both of Neville's parents were apparently some of the greatest aurors of their generation, so he asked, "You want to be an auror too?"

"That's the plan right now, except my Uncle Algie doesn't agree," Frank chuckled at the thought of his eccentric uncle.

"Why not?"

"He works in the Department of Mysteries and says that aurors are a bunch of pussy's who couldn't beat a properly trained toddler even if they tried."

"Sounds like quite the character," Harry remembered Neville saying something similar about Algie.

"Yeah, he's a bit insane. Throws hexes at me whenever I see him, telling me that I never know who's going to attack, and to always have, 'Constant Vigilance.' Despite the fact he's family, working with him would be the last thing I would ever want to do."

Harry was a little shocked at Algie's use of 'Constant Vigilance,' maybe Moody learnt the phrase from him at one point. "Wow, um yeah. I don't blame you," Harry could sympathise with Frank a little on this, because the last place he would ever want to work would be Grunnings with Uncle Vernon.

"Yeah, my mum is a little insane in her own way as well. Algie's got his paranoia, and mum's got her overbearing mother-hen attitude. I'm fairly certain it's just a by-product of the war against Grindelwald."

"War against Grindelwald?" Harry asked slightly curious. All he knew was that the war took place alongside muggle WWII, and that Dumbledore defeated Grindelwald in one of the greatest duels of all time. He thought it was mostly just Germany, Bulgaria, and the former Yugoslavian countries that were involved.

"Right…you grew up mostly in the Americas, I forgot. The repercussions of the war probably didn't affect you guys that much, seeing as South America didn't get involved and North America only joined in at the tail end of the war. Well, when the Dark Lord Grindelwald started to gain power in Germany and Southern Europe many of the Western and Northern Europe countries decided to get involved. France, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, all rallied against Grindelwald's forces with the help of the ICW. Magical Britain, as incompetent as ever, refused to get involved in the hopes that Grindelwald would leave us alone. As his forces started to defeat and gain ground on the countries allied with the ICW, the ICW called for help from Magical Britain and from Dumbledore specifically. Once again they were ignored, which is why some families decided to take matters into their own hands. The houses Potter, Black, Bones, Greengrass, Bode, Longbottom, all went out to join the war effort. In fact, Charlus Potter and Arcturus Black almost singlehandedly pushed back Grindelwald's army. Even Grindelwald avoided the two men at all costs, and eventually Magical Britain joined the war and Dumbledore defeated Grindelwald shortly after. The war was very costly and led to the extinction of many houses around Europe, even a few in Britain disappeared because of it."

"I had no idea…" Harry trailed off, as he was totally gobsmacked. Harry new that WWII was costly for the muggles, but he had no idea how terrible it was for the magical population as well.

"It's not really surprising," Frank shrugged his shoulders. "A lot of the older population that took part in the war don't want to talk about it or remember it, and the ministry pretends the war never happened because they don't want to acknowledge their own inaction."

"So that's why there are no books about it, and why it's not taught in history," Harry said out loud, but mostly to himself. This explained why even in his original time there were no books about Grindelwald, and why there were no books about the first war against Voldemort. Since nobody wanted to talk about it and the ministry didn't want to accept what happened, this left the general population uneducated and allowed the same cycle of bullshit to continue. Even _The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts_ barely skimmed through the various dark lords in history, and half of the book was a fictional biography of his life!

"It does explain why there are no books, and after your first class a few days ago I think it's pretty obvious why we aren't taught it in history," Frank concluded with a knowing smirk.

"Binns." Harry simply said.

"Got it in one Mr. Peverell," Frank replied causing both boys to start laughing.

Their laughter was quickly cut short with the arrival of the stern looking Professor McGonagall. "Wands away for the moment, I want everyone's full attention," she called out to the class. "This year is your OWL year, the year that will separate those who will continue on with my class for the next two years and those who will not be accepted back. Transfiguration is an art that is vital to the everyday witch and wizard's life, and I expect all of you to at least get an acceptable and to push for an exceeds expectations. I take every failure personally, and the last thing any of you want is to personally insult me," McGonagall warned.

She then spent the next half an hour explaining the OWL examinations and what the course would be covering that year. "Your task today is to take the block of wood in front of you and transfigure it into a rabbit, you will then transfigure the rabbit into a porcupine, and finally you will transfigure the porcupine into a pin cushion. The exercise is meant to test your animate to inanimate, inanimate to animate, and animal to animal transfiguration."

Everyone immediately set off to work, trying their best to remember the various techniques to transfiguration after having an entire summer off. Harry was genuinely excited for Transfiguration this year, despite already taking OWL level transfiguration. Ever since he returned from his conversation with Death and the Horcrux was removed, Harry found that transfiguration came much easier to him.

Transfiguration was the perfect area in magic for Harry to practice his control on power, and to improve his finesse. It was still a work in progress, but Harry was happy with the fact that his transfigurations were becoming more and more detailed with less power being used. Harry found that finesse gave detail, while power gave the size and duration of the transfiguration. Obviously it was more complex than that, but those were his two golden rules.

"Mr. Potter," the sharp tone of McGonagall cut through the classroom. Harry quickly looked up expecting to be chastised from his head of house as usual, "I appreciate your enthusiasm for the art of transfiguration, however I would appreciate it if you managed to stay on task and not distract those around you."

"Yes ma'am!" James responded with an army solute. Harry let go a sigh of relief at the fact she was calling him out, as he remembered that he no longer was a Potter but a Peverell.

The class started laughing, and Harry looked over to see what was causing the outburst. James had transfigured Sirius' porcupine to have a long curtain of greasy black hair that looked frighteningly similar to a particular Slytherin 5th year. Harry also started to laugh, but not at what James transfigured, but at the furious expression on Lily's beet red face.

"You think Lily is going to pass out?" Frank laughed out while nudging Harry in the side.

"Possibly, that or steam is going to start coming out of her ears," Harry joked back.

"How long do you think it will take for them to finally get together?" Frank asked.

Harry was rather shocked that Frank actually thought that they would end up together, "Why do you say that?"

"Well it's pretty obvious that James is smitten with her. But what most people don't realize, or see, is that Lily actually secretly admires James. You can sometimes see it in her eyes when James does something complex effortlessly in class, or when he's helping some of the younger years in the different houses. Even though she doesn't show it, she actually finds some of what he does quite funny."

"Since when were you a relationship God?" Harry asked slightly shocked.

"Heh, I'm not really. Me and Alice have kind of put this theory together from what we both know about Lily. The only thing that is really holding her back is how hard she clings on to her childhood friendship with Severus. It's the main reason she looks harshly at everything James does."

"So what's your guess?"

"It's really hard to say. I guess it all comes down to how long it takes her to realize what Severus has become. He wasn't always like he is now, but over the last few years he's become a cruel person who hates everyone that he doesn't see as smart as himself."

From the experiences that Harry had with the future Snape, he found that to be quite an accurate description of the man. "I guess we'll see what happens," Harry said, inwardly smirking knowing that in just under two years his parents would find their love.

The rest of the class seemed to fly by, with Harry experimenting different transfigurations with different levels of power an finesse. Near the end of class Harry attempted to switch his porcupine back into a rabbit at full power and was shocked by the result. As he finished picturing the pure white rabbit in his mind's eye, Harry released his magic and saw every single student's transfiguration in the room turn into the white rabbit he imagined.

With that, McGonagall ended the class and called Harry to stay behind.

"I was observing you during class Mr. Peverell, you seem to be quite talented in transfiguration."

"Oh, umm thank you professor," Harry said in a nervous tone.

"I found it quite interesting how you were experimenting with various levels of control and power with your transfigurations. Very few students come to this realization, only those who have a natural affinity for the subject such as Mr. Black and Miss Jones. Even fewer truly understand the technique behind this, such as myself, the headmaster, and young Mr. Potter. I was wondering if you could explain the method behind your experiments?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

Harry tugged at his collar nervously, "To be honest professor I'm not really sure. My magic seems to flow like a river, and I've found that transfiguration comes easier to me when I control the flow of my magic. For me, it is just the balance between finesse and power."

"Ah, well it seems that you have an affinity for the subject like Mr. Black. I am expecting good things from you this year, make sure you keep up with your theory because I will be disappointed with anything less than an O."

"Thank you professor," Harry replied with a little pride in his voice. It felt good knowing he was naturally skilled in a subject, and receiving praise from a professor.

"You may leave for lunch now Mr. Peverell," McGonagall said dismissing him. "Oh, and do try to avoid transfiguring all of the objects in the room next class," she finished with a small smile on her lips.

* * *

"Alright Bella, control yourself, no need to be nervous, and for Merlin's sake hold that tongue of yours!" she mumbled under her breath in order to coach herself as she slowly approached the group of Slytherin boys in the common room.

"Looky, looky Rodolphus," came the sickening voice of Rabastan, "looks who's come crawling back to us already."

"I'm not crawling you halfwit," Bellatrix shot back, "no proper pureblood, especially one from the Most Ancient House of Black, crawls." All it took was one sentence, and these idiots were already on her nerves. She honestly had no idea how she was going to survive these coming months of intelligence gathering.

"Yes Rabastan, there is no way such a fine lady like Bellatrix could possible crawl. Only animals crawl," Rabastan drawled.

"Which is why the mudbloods are always crawling everywhere. They're no better than animals," sneered Lucius. This was followed by laughter from the boys, as they all started shouting out the various things they'd like to do to the muggles and muggleborn.

It was obvious to Bellatrix that this was a rehearsed set of statements that they came up with, but she let them have their fun.

"So you all would fuck animals?" she suddenly said.

The laughter suddenly stopped, "Now why would you say that?" asked Thorfinn Rowle with a slight edge to his voice.

Bellatrix cursed her stupid tongue, "Well, you were all talking about what you'd love to do with your 'wands' to the muggleborn, and didn't you just say the muggleborn were as good as animals?"

"The dirty mudbloods are fucking worthless!" Rabastan spat out, literally. "We're purebloods, magic belongs to us, we can do whatever the fuck we want, Black!"

"Easy, easy Rabastan," Rodolphus calmed his brother down, "I'm sure Bellatrix was only jesting. We all know how sharp a tongue she has. Besides it isn't proper to speak in such a way in front of a pureblood lady."

"It truly is unbecoming," Lucius' smooth voice cut in.

"You want to know what's unbecoming," grumbled Rowle, "the way Vance acted at dinner last night was unbecoming."

"Yes, such a waste of a beautiful pureblood. Throwing herself at that Potter clone," Lucius replied with disgust.

"It's pathetic really," laughed out Rodolphus, "the boy is the product of two squibs. The thought of two squibs mating almost makes me want to throw up."

"But he comes from an Ancient and Most Noble House?!" exclaimed Bellatrix.

Rodolphus gave her a condescending glare, "I don't care what house he comes from, he's weak and comes from parents who don't have enough magic to cast _lumos_."

"Besides, the Peverell house doesn't even hold power anymore," Lucius added, "the lordship and manor were passed onto the Potters, all that's left of that house is a long and old name."

"The Peverell's are one of the oldest families in the magical world, they were even said to rival Merlin in terms of power. How can you write the boy off when History shows otherwise?" Bellatrix questioned.

"Sounds like Vance has some competition, I wonder which one of them is going to pull their skirt off first," mocked Rabastan, "I'd get a better hold on your future wife Rodolphus."

"Easy now Bellatrix," Rodolphus waved her down, as he heard a growl escape from her throat at his brother's words. "The past is the past, what we care about is the future. And right now, us, right here right now, are the future of the magical world."

The anger vanished from Bellatrix's mind, and she perked up after hearing this. She was finally making some headway, now she just needed to prod further, "what makes you say that Ruddy?"

Rodolphus flinched at the hated nickname, and was slightly angered by her scepticism, "we are the future because we have been told we are the future. Change is coming to the magical world, and the purebloods will come out on top."

"Haven't we been saying this for years?" Bellatrix dramatically waved her hand as if she was dismissing what they were saying. All she had to do is egg them on a little longer and she'd get some useful information.

"Oh we have," he replied as an evil smirk started to spread across his face, "but now we have the way, the power, and the plan."

"I'm not very impressed, these are all vague statements that have no evidence."

"You want evidence!" snarled Rabastan as he finally burst from Bellatrix's attitude. "Our Lord is the evidence. He will bring in a new era for the purebloods, and nobody can stop him. He is the most powerf-mmphh…" Rabastan was cut off as his brother shoved cushion into his mouth.

"Rabastan you know we are not supposed to speak of these things in public," he whispered harshly into his brother's ear, while his hands were clamped tightly onto his shoulders.

"What Lord are you talking about?" Bellatrix asked, hoping she could push a little further.

"Enough Bellatrix!" Rodolphus snapped. "Leave now, I have no more patience for your questions. I won't answer anything until I see more respect from you, and until I can trust you."

"Alright Rodolphus have it your way," Bellatrix responded as she got up from her seat, "I wish you a good rest of the day," she finished with a curtsy.

As she walked away from the Slytherin boys, she was quite pleased with herself and the information she managed to manipulate out of them. But if she wanted anything substantial, it was going to be a long and trying road to gain their trust.

* * *

"Merlin! I forgot how many books there were in this place," Harry mumbled to himself as he searched through the various shelves in the Hogwarts library. He had spent the last three hours after dinner in the library searching for books on controlling magic and directing its flow. Thus far he came up empty, and was starting to get frustrated.

"I think you might be looking in the wrong section Harry Peverell," a light voice floated into his ears.

Harry quickly spun around and came face to face with a blonde haired Ravenclaw boy who looked slightly familiar.

"What you seek is not normally found here," he continued with his soft voice. The boy then nodded his head to the side, and Harry turned to see that he was leading him to the Restricted Section.

"Ah, right I forgot that we are given permission to go there this year," Harry said mostly to himself. In his time, only people given special permission from the professors were ever allowed to enter the Restricted Section, not like that ever stopped him and his invisibility cloak.

Harry continued to follow the strange boy into the Restricted Section and past various bookcases, until they reached a far corner of the section, which had one very large bookcase that almost stretched from the floor to the ceiling.

As Harry searched the shelves, he was shocked to find several different books on controlling, channelling, and directing one's magic. Harry climbed one of the library ladders and was grabbing as many of the books as his bag could carry.

Just as Harry grabbed a particular old tome about how power affects different spells, another book caught his eye. It seemed to stick out amongst the various old tomes that were found on the bookcase. It was a rather worn book that was unusually small, almost the size of a pocket book, and had a silvery title that seemed to glow in the dark, _Intent: The Power Behind Magic and Its Role in the Battle of Light and Dark_.

Harry leaned over the ladder and grabbed the small book, putting it into the pocket of his robes. As he stepped off of the ladder, he was surprised to find that the Ravenclaw boy was still there with him.

"You seek the trinity," his dreamy voice stated.

"What?" Harry questioned the boy.

"You seek the trinity," the boy pointed at Harry's chest. Harry looked down to see that the necklace he picked up in the Peverell vault had fallen out of his shirt as he leaned over the ladder. "You seek the hallows, the legacy of the brothers, you seek death," he continued in his dream-like voice.

"I uh don't know what you are talking about," Harry lied as he started to feel uncomfortable.

"No, you know what I'm saying. It's okay, I seek them too," he replied as he took out a necklace from under his robes that was very similar to the one Harry was wearing. "No need to be afraid Harry Peverell, it's alright to seek them. You are the rightful owner of the trinity after all."

"H-how do you know this?"

"My family has been searching for the hollows for centuries. We know they don't belong to us, but it is the thrill of the hunt that we enjoy. That's why we joined the Order of the Trinity."

"The Order of the Trinity?"

"Yes, it's an ancient organization whose goal was to unite the hallows. It's where I got this nice necklace from."

"Well, I guess I do seek the trinity, seeing as they are rightfully mine…"

"It will be an honour to help a Peverell unite them, I'll finally be fulfilling the goal of the order," he said excitedly.

"Yeah, umm sure. I guess we can work together to find them," Harry replied trying to end the conversation as quickly as possible.

"That's exciting, it will almost be like having a friend," he said as a smile crossed his face.

A pang of sadness hit Harry in his chest, as he knew exactly how it felt like not having friends. "Well, how about we become friends then," Harry said trying to make the boy feel better.

"That would be nice," the boy responded in his soft voice as his eyes started to get a little misty.

"I do have a question though," the boy nodded for Harry to go on, "how did you know what books I was looking for?"

"Well its simple really, I saw an infestation of Wrackspurt's in one corner of the library and I went to investigate. I saw you mumbling under your breath about something and I asked them what was wrong, so they told me what you were looking for," he finished while gazing off into the distance.

"I'm sorry but what was your name again?" Harry asked, as he was fairly certain he knew who he was speaking too now.

"I never told you my name Harry Peverell, it's Xenophilius Lovegood, and I'm your partner in your quest to master Death."

 **AN**

 **I'm back! I apologize for the long wait for the update, but University and exams truly are a bitch! The next few updates should be coming fairly soon, as I don't expect to be as busy as I have been the past month.**

 **Feel free to review, and ask any questions you have about the story.**


	11. Chapter 11

The first month of the school year seemed to just fly by for Harry. He had almost forgotten how much he loved Hogwarts, not only because it was the only place he could truly call home, but because of how much he loved learning about magic. Life was much simpler without a Dark Lord breaking into his mind, or imposter teachers, serial killers, killer snakes, and the ministry trying their best to ruin his life. Harry finally was able to relax and truly enjoy his time at Hogwarts for the first time, like any other normal witch or wizard in Britain.

Having already completed his OWLS in his original time, it left Harry with extra time on his hands as he had already covered some of the material they were going over in class. He spent most of this time in various abandoned classrooms and the room of requirement experimenting with his magic. Control and focus over the abundance of magic he felt flowing within himself was becoming easier, and he started to attempt to manipulate the effects of various spells with his intent. Harry felt that he was finally starting to understand magic as a whole, and how it can be shaped to suit our own needs. But at the same time, his exploration into the nature of magic produced more questions than answers.

This burning sense of curiosity that Harry felt was a new experience for him. He vaguely remembered a similar feeling in his first year at Hogwarts, but it was nothing like what he felt now. Harry was never a very studious person, and he did not think he ever would be, but that did not reflect his level of intelligence. Harry's intelligence did not come from reading books or magical theory, it came in the form of his practical thinking. Such as his uncanny ability to think on the spot, to make great leaps of logic, and his almost intimate understanding of the practicality behind spellwork. Harry saw magic in a very unique way, that few would ever come close to understanding.

Ever since his talk with Death, Harry's life had been better than he could ever have imagined. It seemed like Fate was making up for the 15 years of hell that he originally lived through. Sure, he still had the greasy git and a blonde ferret in his life, as Ron would have said, but they were only children and had no real power in Hogwarts. Harry still pinched himself every morning when he woke up to the sight of his father and godfather acting like the teenage idiots he was always told about. The chance to actually get to know and befriend his mother, father, and Sirius, was something he would forever be thankful for.

It was easy for Harry to forget his purpose in coming back, and actually enjoy life. But every time he saw James pull out the invisibility cloak, or when he ran into Xeno in the hallways, he was instantly reminded of the destiny he would never be able to escape. This 'power he knew not' was in his blood, passed down from the three brothers and activated his Peverell heritage. The Wand, The Stone, and The Cloak. Two of which he had no idea where they were, and one that belonged to his father. He'd spent hours thinking about the Hallows and how he was going to acquire them, yet he had come up with nothing. Harry resigned himself to give Xeno more information on the Hallows, and maybe set up a meeting with him the next time he saw him.

"Alright, I think we have all had enough review of your last four years of Defense Against the Dark Arts education. It's time to move on to our topic for this term, Dark Creatures," Harry was brought out of his thoughts as Professor Vakil started class.

"I realize that everyone has their own definition of what a dark creature is, and the different species that belong there. The ministry, the headmaster, the ICW, you, your parents, your neighbours, and your nan, all have their own definitions. And you know what..." he paused for dramatic effect, "…I don't bloody care! All that matters in this classroom is what I tell you, and I want everyone, and I mean _everyone_ , to keep their opinions to themselves. I don't care if you're the biggest bigot since Herpo the Foul or if you're as open minded as Helga Hufflepuff, you will only speak about the dark creatures covered in this class in a purely academic view."

Professor Vakil, Harry noticed, had a talent for public speaking. He spoke in a matter of fact and no nonsense sort of way, and he left no room for misinterpretation. Every word that left his mouth had a purpose, and was used to portray a clear point. The man himself was unremarkable, with balding brown hair, a slightly pudgy body, and standing just below the average height for men. With everything that he was lacking in his physical appearance, he more than made up in his teaching. He spoke in such a way that captivated the classroom, and each lecture was thought provoking. In Harry's opinion, he was easily the best defense professor he had ever had.

"All in all, I have no patience for politics, especially when it involves school children. Now, who here can name a dark creature that they have heard of before?" he asked the class.

"I believe vampires are considered Dark Creatures," Lily called out.

"Correct Miss Evans, vampires are considered dark creatures almost universally. The British Ministry has outright banned all vampires from our lands, while the ICW and other continental countries have resorted to putting restriction on their mating and feeding. The only two places in the world where vampires have the same rights as wizards are Canada and in the Soviet Federation of Magic."

Looking around the room, Harry could see the horrified and disgusted looks on many of the Slytherin students faces. Even some of the Gryffindor students looked uncomfortable with the idea of vampires having equal citizenship rights. However, nobody spoke out of turn as they remembered Professor Vakil's warning.

"Werewolves!" shouted a cold voice. "I have heard they are rather dark and dangerous," Snape sneered as his eyes quickly darted towards Remus and back again before anybody noticed.

"Ah yes, you are correct Mr. Snape. You will not find another topic in all of the Wizarding World that is more hotly debated than the rights and risks of Werewolves. Are they normal wizards that fall ill around once a month, or are they monsters living in human skin looking to spread their curse," he asked rhetorically. "I don't care which one you think; all I want is for you to be properly educated about the dangers lurking in the world. If you ever run into one use silver, physical spells, or run away as fast as you can, because they are highly resistant to magic. We will talk more about the history of lycanthropy, and how to hurt, kill, and escape werewolves in more detail another day."

Harry noticed that Remus tensed at hearing this. That was definitely going to be a hard class for Remus.

"Any others?" Professor Vakil asked again.

"Acromantula's," Frank called from beside him.

"Interesting choice Mr. Longbottom, take five points for giving me an answer that most wouldn't think of. It is thought that there are acromantula's here in the Forbidden Forest, but I highly doubt it because if there were, we would all likely be dead by now. Nevertheless, it's another good reason to stay out of the forest just in case they do live there, because acromantula's are very dangerous."

"Basilisk's!" called out a Slytherin girl.

"Ha! I'll give you five points for making me laugh, Miss Selwyn. The basilisk is the _most_ dangerous of all magical creatures if it is allowed to mature. A wizard can handle a dragon to a certain extent, but it is almost impossible to fight something that you can't see. It is a dark creature, but one I don't think anybody will ever come across especially while at school."

Harry bit down on his lip so hard he drew blood, holding back his laughter. If they only knew of what resided underneath Myrtle's bathroom, in Salazar's secret chamber.

"So far you have all given me decent examples. Not all dark creatures are as dangerous as the one's you have all mentioned, but others can be qualified as dark based on their history, the nature of their magic, their psychological effects, and even the poisons and potion ingredients that can be taken from their bodies," the professor explained, "but there is one creature in particular that is the epitome of a dark creature, and is something that some of you will likely come across in your adult lives depending on your future profession. Can anyone name it?" he asked with a dark look in his eyes.

Immediately, Harry felt like he was taken into a cold world where happiness did not exist. His mother's scream echoed in his mind, the haunted look in his godfather's eyes as they went in for the kiss, Dudley squealing like the pig Hagrid attempted to turn him into… "Dementors…" Harry whispered.

Professor Vakil's eyes snapped to Harry, "What was that Peverell?" he questioned.

Every eye in the classroom fell on Harry as he spoke louder this time, trying to ignore the affects they had on his mind, "Dementors."

Vakil's gaze narrowed slightly, "Yes… Dementors. A creature of darkness, said to be evil incarnate. Something that you seem to be intimately familiar with Peverell."

Harry gave a curt nod. "Seeing as you have firsthand knowledge, why don't you explain what happens when you come across a dementor for those who don't already know," Vakil requested.

Harry knew dementors well, _very well_. With all the research he did on them in his third year and his multiple experiences fighting them, he knew them better than anyone, save for the on-duty guards at Azkaban or the Department of Mysteries. Not wanting to give too much away, Harry decided to give an explanation similar to the one Arabella Figg gave at his trial, "An unnatural cold takes over your body as they come near you, they seem to just suck the happiness out of the air. You feel like you are living in a world of constant misery, and the effects get stronger and stronger the closer they get to you."

"What is their greatest weapon?"

"The dementor' s kiss," Harry shuddered slightly as he thought of Barty Crouch Jr's demise.

"A fate worse than death they say. What is the treatment to dementor exposure?"

"Chocolate."

"Good. Well I don't know when or how you came across one of them, but you should be thanking your lucky stars, Peverell, that someone kept you safe from them."

"I did it myself, sir," Harry said without thinking, and he quickly realized his mistake as Professor Vakil stopped suddenly and turned to face him again.

"You did it yourself? The patronus charm? A charm that requires equal parts extraordinary power, focus, intent, and strength of will. Knowing that charm alone would give you an automatic Outstanding in both your Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts practical NEWTS," he stated skeptically.

Harry swelled with pride internally, knowing that he mastered the charm in his 3rd year. But he remained silent knowing that nobody would believe him and it was better off if it remained that way.

"It sounds as if that is exactly what he was saying, Professor," came the mocking sound of Snape's voice. "I myself would _love_ to see such an extraordinary piece of magic be performed by a fellow classmate."

Never one to back down from Snape's taunts, whether it was an adult or teenage Snape, Harry foolishly rose to the challenge, "I could demonstrate, professor."

"I will allow it, if only to satisfy my own curiosity," Professor Vakil conceded, as he leaned back onto his desk waiting for Harry's attempt.

Harry mentally berated himself for taking Snape's bait as every eye in the classroom was focused on him once again. He saw Snape almost smiling with glee, anticipating Harry to fail; while the rest of the Slytherin students looked at him skeptically. As he looked at the Gryffindor's he saw Lily give him an encouraging smile, Remus and Peter gave him slightly nervous nods, Frank discretely gave him a thumbs up, and James and Sirius were exchanging galleons.

At the sight of his father, Harry stiffened as he remembered what shape his patronus took in corporeal form. Harry had never felt so foolish in his life, as there would be no good explanation for Prongs. Surely James and the Marauders would recognize his animagus form. But then again, Harry was not sure whether or not they were animagi yet, as he only knew they accomplished it in their 5th year, not exactly when in their 5th year.

Realizing that there was not backing out at this point, Harry gathered up his courage and took a leap of faith. Harry took out his beautiful yew wand with the interconnecting black and gold swirls, and the moment it was in his hand he found a newfound sense of confidence. It truly was a fantastic wand, and a better fit than his old holy wand could have ever been. He thought of the train ride to Hogwarts, when he met his mother, father, and Sirius again. He thought of the past month of school, as he got to know the real version of his parents and not the rubbish that everyone was always going on about. He thought of the pure joy he felt when he embraced James on the train after he was welcomed into their family.

With all these thoughts and memories running through his mind, Harry's muscles acted on their own as he raised his wand and spoke the incantation _Expecto Patronum._ Immediately, a bright white light shot out of his wand and Harry looked up with trepidation as a four-legged creature began to coalesce in the light. Four long hooved legs began to trot through the air, as the body began to take shape. Harry was slightly confused as Prongs looked emaciated, with his bones showing through his midsection and legs. A horse shaped head that ended in a beak began to form, followed by a reptilian looking tail. Harry could only look on in shock as a pair of large bat-like wings unfolded from its body, as the statue of the thestral that guarded his vault took flight around the room. _A True Peverell_ , Death's voice was echoed in his head.

Silence.

As Harry willed away his new patronus, he decided to take a look and gauge people's reactions. He was met with a lot of blank stares and surprised faces from both the Gryffindor's and Slytherin's, and he caught Sirius handing over a couple of galleons to James in the corner of his eye.

"That was most impressive Mr. Peverell," Professor Vakil admitted, finally breaking the silence. "I think it would be appropriate to thank Mr. Snape for giving us the opportunity to witness such a remarkable demonstration of magic."

Harry turned his head to where Snape was sitting, and he had to bite back a laugh at his expression. Severus Snape was gobsmacked, an expression one would never have expected to see on the usually expressionless boy. He quickly schooled his expression after the underhanded comment made by the professor, before he turned and locked eyes with Harry. Onyx met emerald, as Snape's eyes expressed all of his pent up fury at being made a fool in front of the class, and a trace of envy was found within them as well.

"Now what can you all tell me boggarts?" Professor Vakil questioned trying to get the class moving again.

Eventually the regular flow to the class returned, and multiple discussions were held about the dark creatures within the magical world. However, none of this registered for Harry as everything just seemed to blur around him. Various different thoughts and questions were whirling around in his head. Perhaps he was a little too impulsive, and didn't think about the repercussions of his actions. He knew that by the end of lunch today the entire school would be talking about his display, thanks to the rumour mill. He realized that his actions would shift the power dynamic of the school slightly. More attention would be focused on him, at least for a little while, and he certainly would be treated differently after today. The thought of being treated differently did scare him slightly, as memories of his past life as Harry Potter flashed through his mind. As Harry Peverell he was just another student going to Hogwarts, and now he was worried that he'd be put up onto a pedestal just because he could perform one spell.

Harry never understood why people always reacted that way when people found out he could perform a corporeal patronus. To be fair, it is quite a complex piece of magic that few adult wizards can perform, but in his mind it shouldn't have been such a big deal.

'I managed to teach the spell to a bunch of school children in the D.A. for Merlin's sake,' Harry complained internally, 'sure Luna's patronus was probably the only one that could have held off a dementor at the time but at least they could do it.'

Neville was a prodigy with plants when he went to Hogwarts, and nobody was singing his praises except for Professor Sprout. Snape for all of his faults was a master brewer, and nobody was bowing down on the ground that he walked on. Harry saw no difference between their obvious talents and his own.

'I guess showmanship is a big thing in wizarding society,' Harry thought to himself, 'and there are very few spells that put on as good a show as a patronus.'

Harry let out a sigh of relief as the class finally ended, and he stood quickly to gather his things, hoping to escape the classroom first.

His efforts were worthless as Professor Vakil called out to him, "Peverell, a word please!"

Harry stopped abruptly, turned, and waited patiently for the rest of the class to file out. James and Sirius shot him identical cheeky grins as they passed, Lily gave him a sympathetic smile, and Frank clasped his shoulder congratulating him for some 'awesome spellwork.'

Once the final few Slytherin students made their way out of the classroom and to the great hall for lunch, Harry walked towards the professor's desk.

"You wanted a word, sir?" Harry asked even though he was pretty certain what they were going to discuss.

"Ah yes, Peverell," he answered, looking up from the stack of essays that he was putting away to be marked later. "I just wanted to personally congratulate you on your demonstration in class today. I wouldn't have believed it if I did not see it," he admitted.

"Thank you professor," Harry replied.

"I am a bit curious though, and had a few question if you don't mind me asking?"

"Uh, no sir, you can go right ahead," Harry relented, despite being slightly nervous at what his professor would want to know.

"The spell seemed to come quite easy to you, and you acted on muscle memory if I am not mistaken. That would imply that you have used the spell on multiple occasions over a reasonable amount of time," he stated, surprising Harry with his observation skills. "I was wondering when you first learned the spell?"

"Well, um that would have been in my third-uh, when I was thirteen," Harry replied, quickly catching the slip he almost made.

"Corporeal?"

"Yes sir."

"Hmm," Vakil hummed to himself as he leaned back in his chair, "a corporeal patronus at thirteen years old, that is almost unheard of," he said to himself in a tone of voice that indicated how impressed he was. "I think it would be reasonable to assume that you did not learn the spell out of curiosity, nor at the age of thirteen did you come across some of the rare charms tomes that mention the spell. That would indicate that you learned the spell out of necessity for whatever reason, which leads me to my next question. Who taught you, and why?"

Again Harry was taken aback by the professor's skills in deduction. "I was taught by a family friend because it turned out that I was highly affected by their presence," Harry answered trying to keep his explanation as basic as possible, not giving Professor Vakil any information to make any more deductions.

"That would make sense, it is found that dementors have a stronger effect on those with traumatic pasts and who are highly sensitive to magic. Which I believe you are the latter," he added with a penetrating gaze.

Harry swallowed nervously, as his professor was partly right. Ever since he had returned, he noticed that he was much more sensitive to the ambient magic in the air, but it was his troubled past that was the main cause of his issues with dementors.

"Anyways, I have heard stories about dementors living in the mines of South America, specifically Chile. So I am sure you must have come across them somewhere there during your travels," Vakil said giving Harry an out.

Harry simply nodded his head in agreement.

"Mr. Peverell I am once again going to congratulate you for impressing me today. But I would like to add that now I know what you are capable of, you will be held to a higher standard," he started, as he returned to putting away his essays. "Now go and head off for lunch, I myself am quite famished and am looking forward to see what the elves have prepared today," he waved Harry off with that last comment before heading back towards his office.

'Thank Merlin that is over with!' Harry mumbled to himself as he grabbed his schoolwork and left the classroom.

As Harry was walking the deserted corridors towards the great hall, Harry began mentally preparing himself for the school's reaction. He realized that a lot of eyes would be staring at him, he just hoped that James and Sirius would not make a big deal out of what happened…who was he kidding, they're James and Sirius. He was happy that he could at least rely on Remus and Frank to act normally.

So caught up in his own thoughts, he didn't notice the figure that came up behind him until they grabbed him by the arm and dragged him into an empty classroom.

The moment he felt someone grab his arm, Harry snapped to attention and drew his wand. Throughout his eventful years at Hogwarts, mostly due to his paranoia, Harry managed to acquire a fast draw. Harry's draw was actually fast enough to get a satisfied grunt of approval from Mad-Eye, which according to Tonks was nothing to sneeze at. But as fast as Harry's draw was, it wasn't fast enough. By the time he pulled his yew wand out and pointed it at his assailant's midsection, there was already a wand digging into his throat.

When he came face to face with his kidnapper, he was met with piercing violet eyes. He started to blush at the sight of the pretty young girl with luscious raven locks, until he realized who exactly had a wand at his throat. Bellatrix Lestrange, no… _Bellatrix Black_. Harry paled at the sight of her, remembering the sickly sweet voice and cackling just before she slit upon Ron's throat.

"How?" the sharp question left her mouth.

"Huh?" Harry said very confused.

"Very articulate of you," came the snide remark, "I was asking how."

"How what?" Harry asked slightly irritated this time. 'What does this mad woman want?' he thought to himself.

"As if you don't know what I am talking about," she said as if she were talking to an idiot.

"I really don't know what you are talking about," Harry snapped back, "and could please take your bloody wand off my throat, it makes it more than a little hard to think properly."

"Ugh fine!" she huffed. "You have a fast draw by the way," she said honestly, "but…obviously not as fast as mine."

'Was that a compliment?' Harry questioned himself.

"Yeah, I'm sure it had nothing to do with the fact you grabbed me from behind," Harry muttered out loud as he rubbed the spot on his throat where Bellatrix's wand previously was.

"It's not my fault you have nothing but empty space in your head, honestly my great aunt has more spatial awareness than you do as she's half blind and half deaf, and has lived in isolation for the past 30 years of her life," she mocked him.

'Merlin, I'm pretty sure that every other thing that comes out of her mouth is an insult,' he mentally sighed.

"What is it you wanted so badly, that you dragged me into an abandoned classroom," Harry said trying to get back on topic, in the hopes that this conversation would ender sooner rather than later.

"How did you perform the patronus charm in class today?" she asked with an eager look in her violet eyes in the hope that she would get an answer.

"Well… I learned the incantation and wand movements, I put them together, and the spell left my wand," Harry answered sarcastically not in the mood for this topic.

"You have an awful sense of humour," she cut back.

It took almost all of Harry's self-control to not laugh at the fact that Bellatrix Lestr- _Black_ , thought _his_ sense of humour was bad.

"I want to know _how_ you were able to do it," she continued.

"I practiced."

"You know Peverell, you are a very irritating person, even for a Gryffindor," she pulled her hair in frustration. "Of course it requires practice, you don't think that I haven't practiced the charm. I saw the look on Professor Vakil's face when your corporeal patronus was trotting around the room like some uptight Frenchman's prize Abraxan stallion. It takes much more than just _practice_ to pull that off. Now tell me how!" she demanded.

"It's a spell powered by emotion," he gave her a small bit of advice.

"And…?" she looked at him expecting more.

"That's it."

"What do you mean _that's it_!" she snapped, as her face started to burn red with anger. "It's just not fair, to be given such prodigious talent but have it wasted by being a complete and utter moron," she whispered to herself under her breath as she started to pace around the room.

"Don't call me a moron," Harry retorted as he started to get angry himself. 'What the hell is her problem!?' Harry was screaming in his mind.

"Well you are!" she almost screamed in frustration. "You are able to pull off one of the most advanced charms on the school curriculum, and all you can tell me is that it is powered by emotion! Almost all advanced magic is powered by emotion to some degree! Have you not seen how complicated the description of the theory behind the spell is!?"

"To be honest, no. I just learnt the spell because I needed to," he answered truthfully. He had no idea that there was even theory behind the patronus charm, Remus never mentioned it to him when he was learning it.

Bellatrix's jaw hung open after hearing that, "Are you telling me that you just learnt the spell… without ever looking at the theory…HOW?"

Harry actually laughed a bit at her expression, "I told you already, to perform the spell all you need is the incantation, the wand movement, and emotion. A powerful emotion of pure happiness and joy. It can come from a memory, or it can come from a picture painted in your mind."

She just looked at him with wide unbelieving eyes. "That's all you need? It is that simple?"

"Honestly, yes. Well… that and a whole bunch of power," he shrugged.

"Wow," she said as she got a faraway look in her eyes. It looked like she was having a mental debate with herself, and Harry was tempted to just turn and leave her to her thoughts. That was until her eyes snapped back to Harry and she said, "Teach me."

"Wait, w-w-wha-w-w-what!?"

"My, don't you just have a way with words," she mocked him again, "I want you to teach me."

Harry was shocked. Bellatrix Black, formerly _Bellatrix Lestrange_ , wanted his help. The woman who murdered his best friend, and tortured the parents of his god brother to insanity. This woman, no girl, wanted his help.

"Why?" Harry was actually curious.

"I think it is pretty obvious why, but then again you are a moron."

'Is she teasing me?' Harry's mind questioned.

"I want to learn the spell. I have been trying to learn it for almost a year now, and I haven't been able to get anything but a tiny bit of silver mist. According to you the spell isn't that complicated, therefore it shouldn't be too much of a bother for you to teach me," she finished.

Harry looked at the girl who was asking, almost begging, for him to teach her a spell that he had already taught to students before. His mind was immediately assaulted with the image of the sickly looking Bellatrix Lestrange standing up to Voldemort in the Department of Mysteries, just before being murdered by her former master. 'I still have no idea what in Godric's name that was all about?' Harry reminded himself. For some stupid reason, maybe he actually was a moron, he decided that he would help her out this one time.

"Fine, I'll do it."

Bellatrix's eyes lit up, and a small smile tugged at her lips making her look even prettier than she normally did. "Perfect!" she exclaimed, "I'll come find you again when I have a time and place for us to meet."

Harry was relieved that the conversation was finally over, as she threw her schoolbag over her shoulder and made her way to the door. But she suddenly stopped, "I still think you are a moron though," she said with a straight face.

Harry had a sudden urge to bang his head against the brick walls of the castle, "Why?" he sighed.

"Because only a moron would fall for Snape's bait. It was obvious that he was trying to get a rise from you, and have you fail in front of the class. Sure he was embarrassed when you actually could perform the charm, but you still ended up the loser. Now everyone in the entire school knows how capable a wizard you are, you should learn to keep your cards close to your chest," and with those parting words she left the classroom and disappeared down the hallways that led to the dungeons.

Harry's stomach was making noises that reminded him of Fluffy the Cerberus, as he made his way to the great hall. He started to come across a number of students in the hallways who had already finished lunch, but he chose to ignore them and their stares. Casting a quick _tempus_ charm, he saw that there were still 20 minutes left before he had to leave for his potions class after lunch.

As he was just about to enter the great hall, he heard his name called softly and a hand gently grabbed onto his arm. Harry turned around and was met with startling pale blue eyes. He was face to face with the very attractive Emmeline Vance. She wasn't conventionally attractive like one would expect a super model or veela to be, with her sharp angular features. Her eyebrows were slightly thicker than most, she had high sharp cheekbones, a thin nose that was slightly larger than average, thick pink lips, and a stronger jaw than most boys in the school. However, when put all together, the whole was greater than the sum of its parts. It was at this point that Harry realized he was inspecting every inch of her face, and he blushed heavily.

"Hi Harry!" she blushed slightly under the scrutiny of his emerald eyes, "I haven't seen you recently and was wondering how you were doing."

"Oh, hi Emmeline-uh-Emmy," he corrected himself, "I'm doing pretty good actually, just a little hungry if anything. How are you?"

She brightened when Harry used the nickname she gave him permission to call her by, "I'm feeling fantastic right now," she smiled at him, making his stomach do things that he was pretty sure had nothing to do with hunger. "I actually wanted to warn you before you went in to get lunch," she started.

"Warn me about what?" he cut in.

"Well, James and Sirius came in with the rest of the Gryffindor's and Slytherin's from your defense class and the rumours started to spread. As the rumours started to get more absurd, James and Sirius took it upon themselves to recreate the scene for everyone."

"What do you mean recreate?" Harry questioned not liking where the conversation was going.

"Well… you know how James is considered a prodigy in transfiguration," Harry nodded, "well he transfigured a snake-like tail and fairy wings onto Sirius, who started trotting on and around the tables. I think James said he was playing the role of you, because you look so similar to one another, and Sirius was playing the role of Bones."

"Bones?"

"I think that was the name James and Sirius came up with for you patronus," she said slightly unsure.

For the second time in less than 15 minutes, Harry had the sudden urge to slam his head into the stone walls, repeatedly.

"Is it true?" she asked.

"Is what true?" he asked back. 'What is with pretty witches and being so vague in their questions today,' Harry wondered to himself.

"That you formed a fully corporeal patronus in class today."

"Yeah it's true," he admitted, "I spoke up when I shouldn't have and Professor Vakil had me demonstrate it to the class."

Her eyes lit up with wonder at his admission. "That's incredible Harry!" she almost squealed as she placed a hand on his forearm. "I've only been able to get a misty figure to come out of my wand when I attempt it, I think it is supposed to be a horse but I'm not completely sure," she finished looking slightly put out with not knowing her patronus.

"That's actually quite impressive," Harry admitted, he knew very few people who were able to get that far in the process on their own.

"Really?" she asked hopefully. "Professor Flitwick said something similar when I demonstrated it to him after NEWT Charms a few weeks ago."

"Yeah that is actually quite good, I could help you get a fully corporeal patronus if you want?" Harry didn't know what possessed him to ask her, but he still did.

One of the most beautiful smiles he had ever seen crossed her face as she jumped and hugged him, "Yes, yes, yes, yes! Please!"

Feeling her breasts pushed up against him, caused Harry to blush; and realizing what she just did made Emmeline blush furiously as well, as she broke contact from him.

"I uh-umm, should probably head for lunch now. I have potions in about 10 minutes," he said edging his way closer to the doors of the great hall.

"Oh, um, yeah," she replied slightly embarrassed. "Wait!" she suddenly called out as Harry was about to leave.

As Harry turned to face her again, he noticed that she was quite nervous and was twisting the fabric of her sweater in her hands.

"I uh, well, was wondering…," she started out meekly, "well the first Hogsmeade weekend is on the 25th, and I was, well, wondering if you wanted to go with me?" she asked.

Harry was shocked, again. He was awful with girls, his failed date with Cho Chang was a testament to that fact. Why would she want to go to Hogsmeade with him? She asked him. Harry was fairly certain it should have been the other way around, but she still asked him. He just stood there in silent shock not knowing what to say, until he saw a small frown cross her face as she took his silence for rejection.

Just as she was about to turn away and run for her dormitory, classes be damned, Harry snapped back to his sense. "Yes!" he shouted much louder than he should have, as he drew the attention of almost everyone that was outside the great hall. He flushed at all the looks he was getting, "Yes, of course I'll go with you. Just remind me... okay, and uh let me know when you want to leave that day," he smiled at her.

Immediately, the glazed look in her eyes disappeared and they twinkled brilliantly in a way Dumbledore would be proud of. "Great!" she cried out barely concealing her relief and joy, "I'll see you later right?" she asked, which Harry nodded in confirmation. "Okay, bye Harry!" she called out as she ran over to her friends who were huddled around in the corner watching from a distance.

Harry's stomach roared again, this time it was reminiscent of the Horntail he had to fight, immediately reminding him what his ultimate goal had been before being interrupted twice after class.

Harry then marched into the great hall and sat down beside Frank, before immediately shoving food both onto his plate and into his mouth. As he focused on putting as much as possible into his stomach, Harry failed to notice all the stares he was getting from both the staff and students. But most importantly, he failed to see an irate Professor McGonagall and an amused Professor Dumbledore try to un-transfigure Sirius while James was rolling around on the floor in tears.

 **AN:**

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter, the next one should be coming out either this week or next week.**

 **Leave some reviews and let me know what you think!**


	12. Chapter 12

"Ughhhhh! I swear to God that Slughorn is trying to kill us!" complained a distressed looking brunette.

"Oh calm down Marls, you're being a drama queen," Lily replied ignoring her friend's antics.

"A two-foot essay, TWO FOOT, on the uses of moonstones and bowtruckle leaves due next class. Not to mention the practical and written test on antidotes next class too! We're not even two months into the year, Lils, and we've had more potions tests than all of our other years combined!" Marlene continued on with a crazed look in her eyes.

"She does have a point, Lily," came the soft voice of Alice, "you have to admit it is a tiny bit excessive."

"All that Professor Slughorn is trying to do is separate the poor students from those that he thinks have potential to be in his NEWT classes next year," Lily sighed internally having already explained this to her friends.

"Well obviously you don't have any issues given that you work with Snape. I swear he was born in a cauldron, it's the only explanation for why he's so good," Marlene theorized.

"I will have you know that we both do equal amounts of work, so does that mean I was born in a cauldron too?" Lily asked rhetorically. "Anyways, I've been Sevs partner since first year and Slughorn would lose his mind if the 'dream team' was broken up."

"Speaking of the 'dream team'," Marlene mocked, "are you and Snape friends again, or is it strictly a working relationship still?"

"Well seeing as she just called him Sev, I'm pretty sure their weird relationship is back on," Alice giggled.

Lily ignored the relationship comment, as her friends had been making that joke since their second year, contrary to all the evidence against it. "Severus apologized to me just the other day, and he seemed quite genuine about it."

"What was there to be genuine about," Marlene's voice suddenly turned cold, "the fact that him and his friends were picking on some Hufflepuff first years? Or was it how he cursed Melinda Crowfet, who by the way, is still in the hospital wing."

"He wasn't with Derrick and Avery when those Hufflepuff girls were bullied," she shot back.

"The witnesses say otherwise."

"He wasn't there!" Lily continued to defend him.

"Oh, really?" Marlene feigned ignorance, "now who told you that?"

"Sev did, when he came to apologize to me."

"Doesn't sound much like an apology to me. It sounds like he just came up to you and fed you excuses. Do you really think _he_ would ever admit to doing something wrong, especially to you, Lils?" Marlene explained.

Lily's temper was starting to heat up, but at the same time a small part of her knew that Marlene's argument made sense.

"And what about Melinda?" Marlene continued, knowing that she was on a role.

"What about her?" Lily snapped back, her temper getting the better of her.

"He cursed her Lily!"

"He didn't mean to," she pleaded, "he said it was supposed to hit James."

"Oh, so just because it was aimed for James makes it alright?"

Lily paused at this. "Yes! I mean n-n-no…but James was picking on him."

"I was there Lily! James did no such thing. James was busy helping out Melinda with her arithmancy work before class, and Snape tried to curse him from behind and hit Melinda instead."

"But, but…James," Lily pleaded.

"That's no excuse!" Marlene almost shrieked. "I know you have your issues with James, but you can't just blame him for every bad thing that Snape has done. This feud between them is not as one sided as you believe…Snape is not as innocent as you think. In fact, he's far from it."

Lily was near tears at this point. "You're just another person wh-who h-hates him and l-l-loves James. S-Sev was such a s-s-sweet boy…" she managed to get out as the tears were now threatening to spill.

"Lily…" the soft voice of Alice cut in for the first time, "he might have been that sweet boy you knew as a child, but people change over time. He's changed. It's not healthy to ignore what is going on around you."

Lily couldn't take it anymore. It felt like the walls of the castle were closing in on her. It was hard to breathe…she couldn't breathe. A storm of emotions was raging inside her, and the only things that she could do was run.

Tears streaming from her eyes, the pretty redhead sprinted through various corridors with no real destination. With her senses in disorder she bowled into a group of students. Not wanting to further her embarrassment, she picked herself up and continued to run away. She thought she heard someone call her name, but she wanted nothing to do with them. She wanted nothing to do with anyone at that moment.

She ran until her legs finally collapsed beneath her. She didn't know where she ended up, and she didn't really care. All that mattered, was the pent up emotion she was letting out in shaky sobs.

Lily did not know how long she sat crying in the abandoned corridor, and she was only brought back to reality with the sound of approaching footsteps.

"M-Lily…?" the voice of the figure called out as they approached.

Lily looked up with red puffy eyes, only to see the figure of James Potter. The last person on the planet that she wanted to see.

Except it wasn't.

As the figure took another step closer she saw a pair of emerald green eyes that looked eerily similar to her own, and a bit of tension left her body.

"Harry," she said in a flat voice.

"I uh, saw you running in the corridor and thought you would…"

"Yeah, I could use some company right now," she said with a sad smile, as she patted the ground beside.

Harry took a seat beside his mother, "You ran into James and his friends in the hallway. He wanted to go after you, but… I convinced him not to."

"Thank you," she said genuinely grateful, "that would have been disastrous."

"Do you, umm, want to talk about what happened?"

Lily rubbed the remaining tears from her eyes before sighing, "I think it would make me feel better."

Harry leaned back against the wall to make himself comfortable as Lily was preparing to tell her story.

"I guess it all starts with when I first met Severus. My family wasn't very well off, and we lived in a rundown village called Spinner's End. My family didn't care that we were poor, because we more than made up for it with our love for each other," she started with a smile on her face, "Me and my sister Petunia were inseparable…but that was until I started showing signs of my magic. Every time I'd perform accidental magic, Petunia would get scared or jealous and she'd end up running away from me. One day after she ran away, Severus crawled out of a bush nearby and introduced himself."

Harry gave her a curious look.

"I know, I know, it was quite creepy," she laughed. "I didn't really care at the time, because what he told me next changed my life. I had magic. Finally, after months of not knowing what was going on around me, I finally had an explanation. Not only that, but I found someone else my age who also had this _gift_ , and could answer any of the questions I had. It turned out that Severus lived quite close to my family, and just like that I made my first magical friend."

Harry could sympathize with Lily. Despite the many faults that Ron had, Harry always felt a strong connection with his first ever friend.

"Over the next few years Severus explained to me all about the magical world, and when I finally got my Hogwarts letter I was so excited. I was amazed when I went to Diagon Alley for the first time, and seeing the Hogwarts Express is still one of my favorite memories. I never had a lot of friends when I was younger, so when I stepped onto the train for the first time I went out looking for new friends. Soon, I found myself in a compartment with two funny boys who made me laugh and smile, and I thought I found my first two new friends. That was until Severus entered the compartment, and the legendary rivalry between Severus, James and Sirius began. I don't remember exactly what was said between them, but I do remember them insulting Severus, so I left the compartment with him."

Lily heavily exhaled as if what she was going to say next troubled her greatly.

"Their problems with each other only got worse. James and Sirius going to Gryffindor with me, and Severus going to Slytherin. To this day I still don't know what caused them to hate each other. Severus is my childhood best friend; I just couldn't throw away our friendship. Even in our first year, I had people asking me why I spent time with him. I know that Severus isn't the most approachable person, but it seemed like nobody ever even gave him a chance. Over the years, our friendship started to get strained. Even now, there are major cracks in our relationship and I don't think they can ever be filled. Especially since my family moved away from Spinners End this past summer. The people he associates with in Slytherin and the things they do to other students don't help. He thinks he can hide it from me, but I know he is fascinated by the Dark Arts. It's just so hard for me to connect the sweet damaged boy he was, to the person he is now. I got into a fight with my best friend today because I can't accept the things he's done, and I'd sooner blame it all on James."

Lily didn't know why she was telling Harry all of this, but for some reason she just felt comfortable in his presence.

"James…he's frustrating. It's just too easy to blame him for all my issues. The boy who insulted Severus on the first train ride, the boy who constantly pranks people, the arrogant boy who takes pride in being a nuisance, the quiditch star, the playboy, the boy who mocks me constantly by asking me out. It's like a game to him, and it upsets me seeing someone with so much talent and potential to waste it. I guess that is why I find it so much easier to ignore the good qualities he has, in favour of the bad ones."

Hearing this brought a small smile to his face. He knew that his mother and father had a rough beginning, but the words his mother just spoke contained the evidence of the foundation of their future relationship.

"You know Lily, I was once told that at one point in our lives we have to make the choice between what is right and what is easy. I think deep down you already know how you feel and what you should do, just remember to keep an open mind."

With that, Harry gave Lily's shoulder a squeeze and picked himself up off of the floor. He turned a silently made his way back down the hallway, leaving Lily to reflect on what just happened.

* * *

Seeing the development of his mother and father's relationship was both infuriating and sweet at the same time. He could see the affection they had for one another, James being more obvious than Lily, but there just seemed to be an invisible wall between them. Harry was fairly certain that Snape was the reason this wall existed; and until he was dealt with, nothing would develop between James and Lily.

Thoughts about his parents and Snape dominated his mind as he made his way through the Gryffindor common room that evening and made his way towards the 5th year boys dorm.

As he approached the door, he could hear muffled voices coming from inside, "…stop…Ouch...don't stick it up that far…that hurts…idiot…Oi watch where you're poking that thing!"

If it was any other dorm room, Harry would have been worried about what was going on inside. But the Marauders were the Marauders, so Harry opened the door without hesitation expecting to find something completely ridiculous.

He wasn't disappointed.

Harry walked into the room to see a half-naked Sirius, hanging upside down from the corner of his four-poster bed with James holding his wand in Sirius' mouth like a muggle dentist. Peter was in the corner of the room scouring through piles of handwritten notes, obviously searching for something in particular.

"I told you already Prongs, watch where you're pointing that bloody wand! I don't want my perfect teeth to be scattered across the room, just think of all the devastated young witches when I can't flash them my perfect smile," Sirius acted out, pretending to be heartbroken.

"You know what Padfoot, it's not as easy as it looks. The books never had a chapter on what to do when their idiot friend's dog-tongue constantly gets in the way," James shot back.

"You know Prongsie, this tongue has done some wondrous things for a fair few ladies. Why just last week I rememb-"

"Padfoot shut up, your unnecessary jabber only makes it harder for me to put the leaf in place."

"Prongs, your notes say to use a permanent sticking charm on the mandrake leaf. It says that the leaf will dissolve when the month is up, and the sticking charm will cancel when the leaf is gone," Peter called from across the room.

"Thanks Wormy, I'm almost done with the mutt over here."

A memory suddenly came to Harry's mind from his time in Grimmauld Place before his 5th year. " _I'll_ _never forget how damn uncomfortable that bloody mandrake leaf was, for the month I had it stuck to the top of my mouth. We could barely eat, breath, drink, and even talking didn't feel normal. I swear the reason that there are so few animagi is because everyone else gives up after a few days of having that stupid leaf in their mouth,"_ Sirius told him in one of the rare moments they had together to talk about his past. Animagi. This was the moment, they started the process to become animagi.

"You're becoming animagi…" Harry automatically said out loud.

The boys suddenly froze. Peter was looking at Harry nervously over the top of a page of notes, James' eyebrows were almost at his hairline, and Sirius' jaw would be hitting the floor if he wasn't upside down.

The silence was broken when Sirius slipped off the corner post of his bed and fell to the floor with a loud BANG.

Realizing that he had just walked into the Marauders greatest secret, Harry had to think quickly in order to defuse the situation. "Wait! Wait, hold on, I'm not going to tell anybody!"

The rest of the boys seemed to relax slightly at this, but James still had an unreadable look on his face.

"I promise! Listen, I know that this is risky, slightly illegal, and you all could get into a lot of trouble for attempting this. I understand…"

"No! No, you don't understand Harry," James cut in.

"I do James, I do," Harry responded.

This caused a confused look to cross Peter's face, but both James and Sirius understood the implications of Harry's statement.

"Listen Harry," James started with a dangerous edge to his voice, "I don't know what you think, but I can tell you it is wrong."

This was the first time Harry saw how deeply his father cared for his friends. He believed it when people told him about it, but to witness such devotion towards people who weren't even his family was incredible. Actually, Harry mentally corrected himself, they were his family. The Marauders were a family, which is what made Wormtail's betrayal that much more painful.

Harry sighed.

"James I know. I'm fairly certain it is no coincidence that you three are all here in the dorms learning to be animagi, while Remus is nowhere to be found.

"Remus has a bad case of the flu, he picked it up from Sally Perks," Sirius lied. It would have been quite the convincing excuse, had Harry not known the truth already.

"It's an interesting time of the month," Harry said to nobody in particular causing all three of the boys to flinch.

"It's not his fault…how could it be," Harry continued, "he is just like everybody else, it's just that he has a… furr-"

"-y little problem," James finished with a small smile.

"James, you said we're family. The Marauders are also your family. So by extension, I consider all of you family as well. There is nothing more important than family…trust me, I know," Harry finished with a sad look in his eye.

The boys in the room thought the sad look in Harry's eye had to do with his parents who died before he returned to England. They were partially correct. Harry _was_ thinking about his dead family, but he was thinking about his young loving parents who were killed by Lord Voldemort over a stupid prophecy, and about his god-father who was locked in hell on earth for a crime he would never commit.

"What you guys are trying to do is loyal and brave, the epitome of Gryffindor house. I say damn the possible consequences and do what you think is right."

"You know what Prongs. I think we've just found ourselves a 5th member of the Marauders," Sirius announced with a grin.

"You know what Padfoot, I think you're right," he replied with a smile.

"Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, Prongs, and…." Peter listed out loud.

"I guess this means we need some more of the potion," James thought out loud.

"Potion?" Harry questioned.

"Animagus revealing potion."

"You want me to become an animagus?"

"It comes with being a Marauder. Being a Gryffindor, a harbinger of mischief, knowing about Remus' furry little problem, and having an animal form are our criteria."

"Yup! I'm a grim…" Sirius started.

"You're not a grim you prat," James corrected him.

"Fine!" he pouted, "I'm a large black dog...also known as grim," he added under his breath.

"I'm a rat," Peter chimed in.

"And I'm a stag," James finished.

"So that just leaves me," the boys all nodded, "you don't happen to have any more of the potion do you?"

"Well…we might," Sirius answered, "You see, we found out about Remus in our second year and that's when we came up with the idea of being animagi. We spent the next couple of years researching everything we could about the process from the Black, Potter, and Hogwarts libraries. Last year is when we brewed the potion to find out our forms, and when we came up with our names. We brewed a few extra and kept them just in case, in preservation vials. All we'd have to do is find them and check that they're still good to use."

"I think they might be in my trunk still," James called out as he started rummaging through his things, "Wormy you're the best brewer out of all of us, can you check the potions when I find them."

"Sure thing James," Peter said with a timid smile at being complimented by his friend.

"Found them!" James shouted a few moments later, tossing a vial over his head without looking.

Harry quickly reached out and caught the vial with his quiditch honed reflexes.

"Ha!" James exclaimed. "I knew you looked like a Seeker. That's two galleons each from all of you!"

Harry just stared at James.

"I'm always on the lookout for talent," James explained, "I saw you and thought you looked like a fair Seeker. Now I have my evidence, all that's left is to see how well you fly."

"James takes Quidditch very seriously," Sirius said, "he's hoping to be Quidditch captain next year, and I'm pretty sure you just made the Seeker shortlist."

Harry knew that being on the Quidditch team would take up a lot of his free time, which he usually used to experiment with magic. However, he thought that it was totally worth it. Flying came naturally to Harry, and it is where he felt most at home.

"I'll think about it," Harry responded.

"Oh come on Harry, think of all the birds you'll pick up being on the team," Sirius joked.

"I don't think he needs to worry about finding birds Padfoot, rumour is that he's gone and landed a date with the lovely Miss Vance next weekend," James laughed.

"I knew there was a reason I liked you," Sirius barked out a laugh wrapping his arms around Harry, "you've got great taste my friend."

"The potions are good!" Peter called out breaking up their conversation.

Sirius bounded across the room and grabbed a potion out of Peter's hand before bringing it back to Harry, "Bottoms up!"

Harry took a seat on the edge of his bed and grabbed the vial before looking at James, who just shrugged his shoulders. Harry downed the vial, and the moment it was empty he vision started to darken, until he was in a world of darkness.

* * *

Everything was completely black. Harry couldn't tell what direction was up, down, left or right. Despite not being able to see or hear anything, Harry was able to feel a presence nearby.

" _You search for your animal, descendent, you wish to unleash your inner beast,"_ came a deep booming voice. " _You have the blood of death flowing through your veins. The blood of the brothers. Ancient magic calls out for you, sings to you like a lover, and you must harness it. You must harness the power of the Mighty Thestral, descendent. Harness it, and salvation can be found."_

As the voice disappeared, it was replaced with the sound of stampeding hooves and flapping wings. Two massive white glowing eyes could be seen within the darkness as they grew closer and closer to Harry. Harry was frozen in place, as the outline of a familiar looking thestral approached him. When it was only feet away, the glowing white eyes of the thestral seemed to explode; blinding Harry with white light.

* * *

Harry jumped back and gasped as his vision started to clear as the white light faded. When he finally could see again, he was met with the excited faces of the three Marauders.

"So what was it?" Sirius asked almost bouncing in excitement.

"Uh, well…" Harry paused trying to get his bearing straight, "it's a thestral," he answered.

The other boys just stared at him.

"A thestral…?" Sirius asked almost to himself.

"Yes a thestral," Harry confirmed.

"Wow…" James muttered not knowing what else to say. "Magical animagi are almost unheard of. That's one of the reasons I don't believe that Sirius' form is a grim. Well, that and the fact his description of it wasn't big enough and it doesn't fit the legends of the grim."

"Yeah, well my form talked to me. It said something about being in the bloodline."

"Well, blood carries magic so it makes sense. The sigil of House Peverell was a thestral, so it is not that surprising that the ancient bloodline would carry the magic of the creature and pass it on to its descendants," Sirius reasoned.

"Yeah, I read somewhere that almost every animagus that ever came from the Slytherin line was able to turn into a basilisk. Apparently that's why the Lord Slytherin was considered to be the King of Serpents or the Serpent Lord," James added.

"Doesn't really matter though," Sirius said, "we still need to learn how to transform first."

"Speaking of which, let's get those mandrake leaves in our mouths," James cheerfully called reminded them.

It took a lot longer than they would like to admit, but after two hours, the boys finally managed to get the mandrake leaves stuck to the top of their mouths.

"Alright, that just leaves one more piece of business I think," James stated while fiddling with the leaf in his mouth.

A look of glee came upon Sirius' face, "Names!" he shouted.

"It is tradition that the name bestowed upon our fellow Marauder, is made up by the rest of the Marauders."

"But Remus isn't here?" Peter piped up.

"Ah, its fine. Remus won't care once we explain it, he'll be too busy worrying that Harry knows about his monthly cycle," Sirius laughed.

"So, what names do we have?" James asked.

"Hmm...Skeleton...nah to creepy...uhhhh, how about Midnight?" Sirius suggested.

"I don't like it that much, I think we can up with something better. What about Batwing?...nope, never mind that was awful...pretend I never said it," James shook his head in shame.

"Uh guys...?"

"Yeah Wormy?" Sirius asked expectantly.

"You know when Harry did his patronus and you guys re-created it in the great hall?"

"Ha!" Sirius barked out a laugh. "How could I forget, we had detention with Filch for a week because of that. But was totally worth it."

"Well, you guys called his patronus Bones. So since his patronus is a thestral like his animus form, why not call them the same thing," Peter concluded.

"I like it," James said with a smile.

"Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, Prongs,... and Bones," Sirius said out loud.

"Sounds perfect," Harry said with a huge smile on his face, trying his best to hold back his tears of happiness.

"You guys aren't worried about Frank finding out about this?" Harry questioned, hoping to distract himself from the utter joy he felt, for completing something that only ever happened in his dreams.

"Frank is always out of the dorm each night from after supper until curfew, with Alice. Even if he did find out, I wouldn't worry. Frank is one of the best lads out there, if he had to, he'd keep the secret. He just likes to stay out of as much trouble as possible, because of his mother and uncle," James answered.

"Yeah, it's one of the reasons everybody loves Frankie," Sirius admitted.

"Sounds fair enough for me," Harry conceded.

"Is everybody ready?" James asked.

"Ready as I'll ever be," Sirius grinned back.

"Once a day, every day, for an entire month right?" Harry asked double checking.

The other boys all nodded in response.

"For Remus?" Peter half stated, half questioned.

The rest of the boys all looked over at Peter and smiled, before saying all together, "for Remus."

They all raised their wands together and prepared to chant one of the most important incantations of their lives:

 _Amato Animo Animato_ _ **Animagus**_

 **AN:**

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter, especially so soon after the last one!**

 **I would like to thank all of you for helping me reach 200 favourites and almost 350 followers.**

 **This is my first ever attempt at writing fan fiction, and I am completely blown away by the support my story has received.**

 **Reviews are always** **appreciated! Feel free to let me know how you feel about the story thus far, who/what you'd like to see next, or if you have any questions.**

 **I'm feeling more inspired than ever right now, so hopefully the next chapter will be out within the next week or two.**

 **See you next time!**


	13. Chapter 13

"This is absolutely useless!" screamed a frustrated young witch.

Harry just shook his head and looked at the raven haired Slytherin with amusement and admiration. Harry had spent the last two hours in an abandoned classroom in the East wing of the castle with Bellatrix, trying to teach her the patronus charm. Sure, Bellatrix found something to complain about every 5 minutes, but her dedication to improving her spellwork was quite impressive.

" _Expecto Patronum!_ " Bellatrix incanted, and once again only a small wisp of white came out of the top of her wand. Stomping her foot on the ground in a way reminiscent to an angry toddler, Bellatrix whipped around and glared at her instructor, "You... are the worst teacher I have ever had. I would've had more success if Binnstaught me these last two hours."

Harry chuckled at that.

"What are you laughing at!" she snapped, "It's your fault I haven't been able to cast the spell properly."

"You and I both know that's not true Miss Black," Harry smirked nervously.

"Ughhh," she almost growled in frustration. "I can recite the theory for this spell I've read it that many times. The pronunciation is flawless, the wand movement is flawless, and I don't think I have ever wanted a spell to work as much as I want this."

"Why do you want to learn it so badly?" Harry asked.

"Because you can do it and I can't."

"That's the reason…?"

"You asked for a reason, so I gave you a reason, moron."

"Fair enough," Harry conceded. 'Merlin, I forgot how difficult she can be,' Harry thought to himself.

Harry withdrew his wand and started pacing around the room, to help get is thoughts moving. "Alright, maybe we are going about this the wrong way," Harry started. "As you said, you have every technical aspect of the spell down, as well as the intent... and that is what I think the problem is," he stated.

"What do you mean?" Bellatrix questioned.

"Everyone thinks about magic differently. Some view it as an everyday tool, some see it as a source of power or superiority, others think about in an abstract way, and then there are those who are more technically oriented," he explained.

"Which one are you?" Bellatrix asked looking genuinely curious.

"Umm, I guess I would be in the abstract category. Magic is all around us, and I see and I feel the magic in the world and think about how I can shape it to accomplish what I want. To me there is no problem in the world that magic cannot solve, and I like to think that each spell that I learn has more than one use."

"That's an interesting way of seeing things."

"I didn't always think of magic in that way, and it definitely has its uses. But it tends to be detrimental for things like potions, runes, or arithmancy, which tend to be more technical," Harry admitted.

"So…you think I should think more abstract when performing the patronus?"

"Not necessarily, I just think that you need to stop thinking so technically. Don't force your magic, let it flow. Don't focus on your intent, but fill your mind and body with emotion."

"You make it sound much easier than it is," Bellatrix huffed.

"I told you already, it took me months to learn the spell properly. You're not going to re-learn how to think about magic in a single day, and I don't want you to do that. All I want is for you to think about your happiest memories and focus only on that. Fill yourself with the joy and happiness from your memories, no matter how long it takes, and only then do I want you to attempt the spell."

Bellatrix sent Harry piercing glare with her violet eyes challenging whether what he said was true. As if sensing his honesty, Bellatrix backed down and closed her eyes before following his instructions.

As Harry sat and waited for her next attempt, he thought back on the past few hours he spent with the enigmatic Bellatrix Black. Never in his life, both past and present, did Harry ever imagine he would willingly spend an afternoon with Bellatrix. Looking at her now, Harry saw a small smile cross her pretty face as she basked in her memories, and he found it hard to connect Bellatrix Lestrange with Bellatrix Black. She was still insane, there was no doubt about that, but instead of consuming her as it had done in the past, her madness seemed to drive her. Harry loathed to admit it, but it was almost endearing in a weird sort of way. She had a razor sharp tongue, quick wit, and was as dangerous as any proper member of the Black family should be.

Not wanting to think any further on the enigma that was Bellatrix Black, Harry pulled out his copy of _Intent: The Power Behind Magic and Its Role in the Battle of Light and Dark_. This small book that Harry picked up in the library earlier in the year, was the greatest contributor to his magical education. The book had completely changed his outlook on magic, and was the source of his burning desire to experiment with magic. It was this book that used his untamed power and intimate connection to magic to explore its endless possibilities, and showed Harry that nothing in the world was as it seemed.

" _Expecto Patronum,"_ Harry looked up from his book at the sound of Bellatrix's latest attempt, and smiled at the sight before him. Bellatrix had managed to form a fairly thick shield of mist and held it for a few seconds, before it slowly flickered out.

"I did it!" Bellatrix shouted with a large smile on her face, something that she would never be caught dead doing under normal circumstances. "Well… almost," she admitted while panting.

"Draining isn't it?" Harry asked, and Bellatrix responded with a nod. "It gets easier over time, just like training a muscle."

"Still wasn't corporeal," she said dejectedly as her previous smile was now replaced with her usual frown.

"That will come with time. You have the idea, now you just need to find better memories."

"Those were my happiest memories," she said looking put out.

"It doesn't necessarily have to be a specific memory; it could be an idea or a particular dream that is based off of your best memories. The more powerful, the better."

Bellatrix nodded, showing that she understood what Harry was getting at. "Interesting read that one," Bellatrix said pointing at _Intent: The Power Behind Magic and Its Role in the Battle of Light and Dark_.

"You read it before?"

"Tried," Bellatrix responded curtly. "I found it fascinating but very complex, but after talking to you I think the reason is because I view magic too technically."

"I've read through it a couple of times already, I can give it to you if you want to give it another try," Harry offered. "Just remember to return it to the restricted section, I don't want Prince hounding me for the rest of my life."

Bellatrix giggled at that, actually _giggled_ , which Harry found very odd.

"No, it's fine," she replied, instantly regaining her composure, "my grandfather already gave me his copy to look over during the summer."

"Huh, I thought the book was one of a kind, it certainly looks like it."

"No, it definitely is," Harry raised an eyebrow at that. "My grandfather wrote that book with a friend when they went to Hogwarts. One copy was left behind here, and my grandfather kept the other," she explained.

"You sound like you admire your grandfather," Harry stated.

Bellatrix didn't respond to the question right away, but the unconscious upward curl of her lip was the only answer Harry needed. "Arcturus is the glue that holds the Black family together," she finally replied.

Harry was about to ask what she meant by that, but was interrupted by a knock on the classroom door.

"I want to protect my sisters," Bellatrix suddenly said out loud.

"What?" Harry had no idea where that came from.

"Earlier, you asked why I wanted to learn the patronus charm. That is my real reason. I want to learn the patronus, amongst other things in order to protect my sisters."

Harry was shocked that Bellatrix Black, a Slytherin, of all people would confide something so personal in him. Obviously Bellatrix wasn't used to putting herself in such a vulnerable position either, because her usually cool tone of voice was betrayed by how her fingers nervously played with the end of her jumper.

"Use that," Harry stated. "Use that thought, and you will have a corporeal patronus within the month."

Bellatrix got up as another knock sounded on the door. As she went to open the door and leave, Bellatrix turned around, "I'll keep you updated on my progress. See you around, moron."

'Back to moron again are we? Well, I knew she was going to say it again eventually. That conversation was almost too good to be true,' Harry admitted to himself.

"Black."

"Vance."

Harry looked up to see the two girls exchange cool greetings at the door as Bellatrix left and Emmeline entered.

"Hi Harry!" she greeted Harry as she went to sit beside him.

"Hey Emmy," Harry returned with a smile.

"What was Black doing here?" she asked honestly. Harry liked that about Emmeline, she did not care about what other people thought or did and didn't get jealous. Other girls would have seen Bellatrix leave the empty classroom with Harry and immediately thought the worst, but Emmeline didn't.

"I was helping her with her patronus. After the defense class where I showed everyone I could do it, she jumped me in the hall and asked me if I could help her. Well…asked isn't the right word actually, it was more like she ordered me." Harry answered with a crooked grin.

"That sounds like something Black would do, I'm pretty sure most of the 7th year boys are terrified of her," she giggled. Harry liked it when she giggled. "How far is she along?" she asked, genuinely interested.

"After over two hours of work, she managed to get the shield down. Still nothing corporeal, but we hit a major breakthrough today."

"That's good to hear. I swear, if you keep up the good work I might have to start calling you Professor Peverell," she teased.

"You think so, do you?" Harry played along. "I think I might just head to Dumbledore's office after this and demand a teaching position."

"Nooooo," she cried out, "please don't!" she went on her knees and pretended to beg.

"Why not?" Harry laughed.

"Because…" she paused as she bounced back onto her feet, "it wouldn't be proper for a professor to be involved with an innocent student," she smirked as she pecked Harry on the lips.

Harry cursed himself as he blushed furiously. He was fairly certain that he would never be able to control the coloring of his face.

"Well…" Harry said as the blush died down, "I guess I can wait one more year before I send in my application," he grinned as this time he caught Emmeline unawares as he kissed her.

Emmeline pouted as Harry beat her at her own game.

"As much as I would love to continue this Emmy, I think it's time we finally get your corporeal patronus to form."

"Focus on the emotion," Harry reminded Emmeline as she drew her wand, "you need to feel the power fill you. Once it's there, just say the words and let your magic flow."

" _Expecto Patronum!"_ she called out, as a bright light shot out of her wand. Initially there was no shape in the mist, but slowly, four galloping legs began to take shape. A body began to form, before two wings shot out of the side. For a split second Harry thought her patronus was a thestral just like his, but then he noticed the feathers on the wings. After a few more seconds, the remaining mist took the shape of a majestic and powerful Abraxan Winged Horse.

Harry smiled with pride as he looked at Emmeline. When he locked eyes with her, he noticed tears streaking down her cheeks. Initially, Harry thought something was wrong, but the outright look of joy on the rest of her face pushed those thoughts away.

They both stood and watched for minutes as the magical steed pranced around the room, filling them both with the warmth and happiness associated with a corporeal patronus.

When the patronus finally disappeared, Harry met Emmeline's gaze again and shot her a smile. Before he could even blink, Emmeline threw herself at Harry and crashed her lips against his. Harry was shocked for half a second, before he returned the kiss with just as much intensity. The two teens wrapped themselves around each other as their tongues dueled for superiority. They were so caught up in exploring each other that they nearly forgot the need for oxygen, until Emmeline quickly pulled back to catch her breath.

"Thank you Harry," she whispered in between heavy breaths as she leaned her forehead against his.

"No problem," Harry softly replied as he gazed into her pale blue eyes. "I should be thanking you, this was some pretty good work experience for when I'm a professor."

'Merlin! Way to go Harry, you just snogged the girl and now you ruin the moment by making an awkward joke. You're a bloody fool!' Harry mentally berated himself.

Luckily, the Gods were smiling down on Harry today, as Emmeline started to giggle. Slowly her giggles turned into full blown laughter, as both she and Harry started to laugh uncontrollably.

Emmeline wiped tears from her eyes as she finally stopped laughing, "Gods, I'm so happy I asked you out before any of the other girls did," she smiled at Harry.

"We hit it off didn't we," Harry grinned like a fool as he thought back to their Hogsmeade date only a few weeks back. "I'm happy you asked me out too, because Godric knows I would not have had any clue that you or anybody else was interested," he admitted.

"That's good, I'm happy you are blind. That just makes it so much easier for me to keep you," she laughed as she kissed his cheek.

They both rested against each other and sat in companionable silence until Harry broke it with a question, "What did you use to finally get your patronus?"

"I thought about the past month," she answered.

"The past month? That was powerful enough?" Harry asked disbelievingly.

She gave a small nod in confirmation, "This past month has probably been the best month of my life," she responded, pausing before continuing on, "I have a little sister who is 9 years old, and has been struggling with a wizarding sickness for most of her childhood. Her magic has always been in flux and had the tendency to turn chaotic. My little sister, Brienna, is the sweetest little girl in the entire world and means more to me than anything else," she said as small tears filled her eyes. "This past month, my family managed to find a healer in America who calmed her magic and set her development back too normal. I've always wanted to be a healer, because I wanted to help sick young witches and wizards just like my sister. Well, last week Madam Pomfrey told me that my application for St. Mungo's was accepted and that I would be given an interview later on this year for their advanced healer program."

When looking at Emmeline, Harry noticed she looked slightly nervous about what she was going to say next, "I also thought about our date," she said shyly. "I know it sounds silly... but that date was some of the most fun I've ever had. It was a first date that ended up being better than any other date I have ever been on, and it just felt right. I feel like me and you just click, and I think that my patronus was powered by how bright my future looks to be right now."

"To be honest, I didn't think I would ever go on a successful date," Harry joked. "But seriously, I'm happy for you... for us," he smiled kindly, truly touched by her words.

But at the mention of their future, Harry had to suppress a frown. As much as he would like to think about a happy future, Harry could not. It was almost as if his mind would not let him. The moment he attempted to draw up a picture of what his future might look like, it immediately would turn dark and form into the terrifying image of Lord Voldemort. It was a harsh reminder of his purpose in life, and how he would never truly live until Voldemort was dead. Now, all that remained in his mind were the countless problems he had yet to overcome in his effort to defeat the Dark Lord.

"They complement each other," Emmeline said out loud, bringing Harry out of his dark thoughts.

"What does?"

"Our patronuses, the thestral and the Abraxan horse."

"Yeah, I guess they do," Harry sighed contentedly as he took her hand in his, clearing the remaining darkness from his mind.

* * *

"Abraxas how are you my old friend?" greeted a rather large wizard with slicked back brown hair.

"I am doing well Ralph," came the cool reply of handsome middle-aged man with flowing blonde hair. With a flick of his wand the man cleaned himself of the soot from the floo, as he made his way across the room to shake hands with his associate.

"How is your son, Lucius, doing?" the host inquired as he led Abraxas into his sitting room where he started pouring two glasses of whiskey.

With a subtle shake of his head, the blonde wizard declined the offer.

"The more for me then," the man chuckled as he downed the first glass and started working on the second.

Abraxas did his best to school his features and not show his disgust at his friend's actions. "Lucius is doing quite well, as far as he has told me in his correspondence from school. He is quite certain he will finish at the year top of his year," the man managed to show only a hint of pride towards his son.

"Head boy?" the man grunted.

"Of course, nothing but the best from the Malfoy heir."

The other man bristled at the slight, "I don't see what the fuss is all about. We are old pure-blooded family's and we hold power and money, I don't see how some bullshit NEWTs should matter. They didn't for me."

"I see you have re-decorated your household," Abraxas noted, attempting to re-direct the conversation.

Looking around the room Abraxas noticed that the traditional decorations of the Lestrange family manor were replaced. The boar of the Lestrange sigil was replaced by silver and green snakes, that resembled a basilisk.

"Ah, yes of course!" Lestrange puffed his chest out in pride. "After learning about our honoured guest's heritage, I saw it fitting to make him feel more at home."

"I'm sure he will be most welcome for your thoughtfulness," Lucius mocked Lestrange's obvious attempt at seeking favour.

Lestrange finished his second glass of whiskey, and led Abraxas through the rest of his manor. Lestrange's brown-nosing was almost laughable, as everywhere Abraxas looked there were silver and green snakes decorating the house. It was almost as if he was living in the Slytherin common room again.

"Here we are," Lestrange announced slightly louder than necessary, which was most likely due to his excess drinking, "the rest of the guests are here waiting for our Lord's arrival," he finished as he opened an elaborately decorated door that led into the main dining room of the manor.

Abraxas looked around the dining table where important political figures and lords of various neutral and traditional houses were seated. After exchanging polite nods with a few of his closer associates, Abraxas was brought to the head of the table where he sat on the left hand side of the head chair and Ralph Lestrange sat on the right.

After a few tense moments of silence, a door opened on the far side of the room, allowing a handsome man with jet-black hair to make a dramatic entrance. Handsome might not have been the best word to describe the man. The man appeared to once be handsome, with aristocratic bone structure, a sense of confidence, and carefully parted black hair; however, this was all overshadowed by patchy white skin that looked almost deformed on his face, and his deep brown eyes that seemed to glow scarlet in a certain light. The men around the table could only guess at what happened to his appearance.

Despite this, the power radiating off of the man was almost overwhelming. For a learned man, they would realize that rather than controlling his magic, he was letting it roam free in an attempt to intimidate those around him. Nevertheless, it was still impressive as Abraxas could only name a few men in Britain who had that ability.

"Welcome my Lords and scions of the most powerful houses in Britain, it truly is an honour to be in the presence of such esteemed members of society," came the unearthly voice of their Lord, which did not seem to match his physical appearance.

As the various men around the room started puffing their chests out in pride at the compliment, the man cut them off, "Or… I should be honoured, when in fact I am not." At this, many around the room tensed at his words and looked to speak out against him.

Before any of the men could argue, he cut them off again, "I am not honoured, because at this moment none of you in this room, right now, have the power that you should. None of you pure-blooded wizards who have had magic flowing through your veins for generations has what rightfully should belong to us."

The mysterious man paused for a second, allowing the men in the room to look around at themselves in shame, "For too long you have cowered and shown fealty to those who have no power and have perverted what magic truly is," he continued on charismatically. "The MUDBLOODS have taken over the wizarding world, and before long, that what true magic users stand for will be destroyed. These muggles have dirtied our way of life, and at this moment they continue to seek power. They look to strip the power that rightfully belongs to those who have stayed true to magic itself."

At this point the man looked like a mad dog frothing at the mouth, "Will you pure-blooded wizards stand by as they seek to destroy our world, our way of life, and our magic?" he called out.

"NO!" The men around the room almost screamed, looking as if they were put in a trance by his words.

Instantly, a cold cruel smile spread across the man's face as he spoke disturbingly soft, "Good, good… then it seems I was not mistaken by speaking to you all here today. I am glad that the heir of Slytherin did not waste his precious time speaking to mudblood loving fools and blood-traitors."

The men around the room all looked as if they wet their pants at the mention that he was the heir of Slytherin. Who knew a single title could bring a group of men to orgasm.

Like the flick of a switch, the insanity returned to the man's face in an instant, "I have returned!" he announced. "Your hero, your master has come again to lead us into the magical world that we deserve. No more mudbloods, no more muggle scum; we were the ones gifted with magic and we shall take what is rightfully ours in order to protect our way of life! I AM LORD VOLDEMORT!" he screamed out at the end.

At the end of his speech, countless men around the room fell to their knees sobbing. They were calling out his name, calling him master, and looked like the whipped dogs they truly really were.

Abraxas looked over at Ralph Lestrange, and saw him smiling as if he was just invited into a brothel full of veela, free of charge. Abraxas was impressed, he had seen a version of this speech before. Some of the dark families were immediately introduced to Lord Voldemort and his dreams for the magical world, while others were only introduced to the handsome mysterious man who invited them to this meeting. Today was the first time his lord announced himself to all those he had spoken to, and the results were just as he had expected. He did not share all of his goals today, as he did with the families he trusted such as the Lestrange's, the Nott's, or the Malfoy's. But, he gave enough to the men here today for them to be hooked. Gradually over time, the majority of those in the room would become loyal followers of their lord.

Abraxas was no fool, he realized what Lord Voldemort truly was, but he did not care. If there was a single person who could bring about the magical utopia he had always dreamed of, it would be his lord. He pledged himself to the cause and took his mark along with Ralph and a select few others, and he could honestly say this was the most excited he had been in years. It felt like nothing could stop them, and he truly believed nothing would, as long as word about their lord did not spread. In his opinion, only three people had the ability to stop their movement. Dumbledore might be a fool, but there was no question that he is one of the most powerful wizards in Europe. Dumbledore is a threat, but he is not the major threat.

The major threat towards their movement are Potter and Black. The two men were an unstoppable force in the war against Grindelwald, and their political and magical power could be a major obstacle. The Potter's were a very neutral family and the Blacks are considered to be one of the foremost dark families in the world, but it would be tough to sway them to their cause. Perhaps if Grindelwald's war was not so fresh in their minds it would be easier to bring them into the fold, but it was impossible to tell how they would react at the moment. It was too risky.

That was why he came up with a plan, one he was going to share with Ralph and his lord.

As the remaining men left the room to head into the parlour for drinks, Abraxas signaled for Ralph to stay behind. "My lord," he called out bowing his head in respect, "might I have a word?" he asked.

"Why of course Lord Malfoy," came the cool response.

The politically savvy Lord Malfoy knew he had to broach the topic gently, "My lord, I was wondering if you had put more thought into whether we should approach the Black family?"

Ralph Lestrange looked at Abraxas expectantly, wondering what he was hoping to get out of this conversation.

"Ah… yes, that was a problem I have been thinking on quite often," Voldemort admitted. "I believe it is still too early in our campaign to bring Lord Black. There is no doubt that his vast resources and power around Europe would be important to our cause, but he still a wildcard, especially with his association with Lord Potter."

"I believe I have a solution to our problems, my lord."

"Oh, do tell Abraxas," the man almost hissed in anticipation.

"I have heard reports that Lord Lestrange has been attempting to secure a betrothal contract between his son Rodolphus and young Bellatrix Black," with Ralph's confirmation he continued, "I believe if this contract is secured we can use it to our advantage. I myself have found that young Narcissa Black is a beauty in the making and would make a lovely pair for my son Lucius, and at this moment I am preparing my own proposal."

"I see," a cold smile appeared on Voldemort's face, "however, your plan has a flaw. It hinges on Lord Black's willingness to accept these contracts."

"I have a solution for that as well," Abraxas smirked, "I know Cygnus Black quite well, as well as Walburga Black, and I can confidently say that they would be sympathetic to our cause and would jump at the chance of securing these contracts. With enough pressure put on Arcturus, I believe we could force him to accept the contracts in order to keep the Black family stable and happy."

Seeing the pleased look on his lord's face he continued on, "I have also been hinting to Lord Rosier that his son would make a good match with Cygnus' eldest daughter Andromeda. With three daughters locked up into contracts with men loyal to our cause, and with the support of most of the Black family, we could bring Arcturus and the power of his family onto our side. And we all know that wherever Arcturus goes, Charlus Potter goes as well. If all goes well we can bring in the might of both the Potter and Black families, and at the same time we can eliminate two of our greatest threats."

Taking a glance at Ralph Lestrange, Abraxas noticed that he looked almost giddy with joy at the plan.

"And what of Orion Black's sons?" Voldemort questioned.

Abraxas knew this was one of weakest parts of the plan after hearing reports of Sirius Black running from home and his attitude towards blood superiority, "Sirius Black, the heir, will go wherever a Potter goes," he answered uneasily, "and if he becomes a problem I am sure we could find a way to eliminate said problem. Regulus would not be hard to manipulate, especially if he is made heir. Walburga has managed to sink her claws into her son, and whatever resistance he might have put up died when his brother left the house. He is also friends with many of those in Slytherin, who our son's," he motioned at Ralph, "have been marking down as potential followers."

Voldemort sat in silence as he contemplated the plan, before a truly evil laugh escaped his pale lips. "I believe this has the potential to work, and if it does we will only face opposition from the old fool Dumbledore."

Voldemort narrowed his eyes as they flashed a deep crimson, "I warn you though my Lords, that this is a delicate operation. If Potter and Black are alerted or become suspicious of what is going on, it could bring unexpected consequences and opposition towards all of us. And… I will be most displeased with both of you," he threated while releasing his magic, causing both Abraxas and Ralph to swallow nervously.

"But should you succeed, you both will be greatly rewarded," he finished while standing out of his seat, indicating the end of the conversation.

Abraxas and Ralph both bowed to their lord before hastily making their exit out of the dining room. Just as the door closed, Abraxas smirked to himself, pleased with the success of his proposed plan.

 **AN**

 **Here is the latest chapter. I have my finals coming up next week, so this will be the last chapter up until Christmas.**

 **I hope you enjoyed the introduction of our villains, and some backstory for the two girls.**

 **The foundation for the story has nearly been completely set, and the story will start to move along quicker from this point.**

 **Reviews are always appreciated, especially at this point in the story. Let me know how you think things will play out and if you have any ideas for what should come next.**

 **Good Luck to those of you still in school, and Happy Holidays.**

 **Until next time**


	14. Chapter 14

It had been happening for weeks. Harry once again found himself in an endless field of darkness. He knew that it was a dream… or at least he thought it was. It had nothing to do with his scar, the lack of pain made him certain of that at least. But still, he was unsure of what this dreamscape was and why he was consistently being brought to it.

It was the same scenario over and over again each night, with Harry standing in the darkness for what felt like days only for two bright glowing white orbs to suddenly appear. Despite it happening every night, the blinding light that came from the orbs always caught Harry by surprise. There was an unnerving feeling that settled over Harry whenever the two orbs appeared, it felt almost as if they were staring into his very soul.

A soft _clip-clop_ sound started to steadily grow louder, 'Well this is new,' Harry thought to himself as he felt a presence approach.

" _Blood of the brothers… Blood of Death…"_ rumbled a deep, almost animalistic voice, " _Weak you are, oh so pathetically weak. No control, no power… I sense only weakness. You have not had the slightest taste of the ancient magic that calls for you. Your bloodline craves what you have yet to provide, how can you harness its ancient power if you are too weak to unlock it…"_

"Who are you to say I am weak!" Harry growled, furious at what he was being told. "No weak man could have endured what I have in my life, I have gone against and beaten the odds every step of the way. I know what needs to be done, and I will not fail."

" _FOOL! How naïve you truly are. Do you think I care about your past… no, no I do not, I care only for the future. Your past holds you back descendant, you cling to it like a youngling does to its mother in search of her milk. You think you draw strength from you past, but all you draw from it is weakness…LET IT GO. If you do not, then you will never take what is rightfully yours, and you and all your fellow humans will fall. Kill the past and look to what is yet to come."_

"WHO ARE YOU!" Harry roared in fury, as the truth of the words were cutting Harry deeply.

" _Who am I? I am you. Your other half. Your mentor, your protector, your greatest ally, your salvation. I am the Mighty Thestral. My blood, the blood of death, flowed in the veins of the brothers and now…it flows in yours. Heed my words descendant for you are weak and unprepared."_

"Unprepared for what?" Harry yelled out as the voice and the glowing white eyes slowly disappeared, "Answer me! How am I weak? What am I unprepared for!"

Harry's words echoed in the darkness without any response, and Harry sat there for what felt like an eternity waiting to wake up from this temporary purgatory.

As Harry's conscious slowly returned to the waking world he was not met with the familiar vibrations coming from his wand under his pillow, but with a familiar warmth sliding along his exposed forearm.

" _Companion I have returned!"_ came an excited hiss.

Harry shook his thoughts on the dream out of his head and rubbed the remaining sleep out of his eyes before looking down at a familiar snake, " _Saphira you're back! I was worried sick for you, I haven't seen you in over a month!"_

" _I am sssorry companion,"_ Saphira responded sounded genuinely sad, " _but I had to leave. I found my Queen and she needed my help."_

" _Your Queen?"_

" _Yesss, the moment I entered the cassstle I ssensed my Queen. I ssspent my time searching for her and finally found her nest. But something wasss very wrong with my Queen and she needed my help."_

" _Is your Queen a Basilisk?"_ Harry asked, fearing he knew where this conversation was going.

" _Yess Companion, she is the Queen of Serpentssss. She is the daughter of the Ssserpent Lords and livess in his chamber."_

" _She needs to be gotten rid of!"_

" _NO! Companion you musst not, she is my Queen!"_ Saphira hissed in a frightened manner.

" _She is a danger Shapira!"_

" _Ssshe is only sssick Companion, my Queen is not beyond help,"_ she responded desperately climbing onto Harry's shoulders and moving her head to look into his eyes.

" _How can she be healed then_ ," Harry responded not sounding entirely convinced.

" _She hass been tainted by the darkest of magic, but my Queen is ssstrong and continues to fight its affectssss. Companion, help me help my Queen."_

Harry's mind flashed back to his second year and he started to feel the phantom pains of the fang stabbing his arm and the agony of the venom flowing through his veins. All Harry wanted to do in that moment was kill the basilisk all over again before anybody had the chance of getting hurt. Colin, Justin, Penelope, and… **Hermione** , she will never be petrified again. Hagrid won't go back to Azkaban for a crime he did not commit, nobody will end up like Myrtle Warren ever again.

Harry grabbed his wand and quickly threw on an old robe before quietly leaving his dorm, making sure not wake Frank or the Marauders.

Saphira was coiled tightly around his upper arm and was pleading with Harry to stop, but he ignored her hisses. The pale, cold form of Ginny Weasley slowly dying would not leave his mind's eye and Harry's only goal was to make it Dumbledore's office as quickly as possible.

But Harry suddenly stopped.

He fell to the floor in agony as the sound of thundering hooves and flapping wings pounded away in his mind. It was more painful than any of his visions from Voldemort and in the moment, Harry was certain his ears started bleeding.

As Harry twitched in pain on the ground, the words from his dream bounced around in his mind.

After what felt like an eternity the pain went away, leaving Harry gasping and sweating on the floor. He knew that he had to let the past die, but how could he forget the horrors he went through. It was his greatest weakness, his fixation on the past, but how could he let it go when it was all he ever knew. Everything that made him Harry Potter lay in the past.

But, Harry Potter is dead…or, not alive. Harry Potter no longer exists. There is only Harry Peverell.

'I am weak…' Harry admitted to himself.

He slowly picked himself up from the floor and leaned heavily on the cold stone wall of a 7th floor hallway trying to catch his breath. As he regained his bearings his mind wandered to his past before being assaulted with memories. The Dursley's, Hagrid bringing his Hogwarts letter, his first trip to Diagon Alley, the Boy-Who-Lived, Hedwig his first friend, meeting Ron and Hermione on the train, the Troll, the Mirror of Erised, Fluffy, his confrontation with Quirrell, meeting Dobby, the flying car, Professor Lockhart, learning about parseltongue, the petrification's, Aragog, his battle with the Basilisk, Tom Riddle's Diary. A sad smile crossed his face thinking back on how crazy his first two years were.

Blowing up Aunt Marge, the mass murderer Sirius Black, the Dementors, meeting Remus Lupin, Buckbeak, learning the Patronus charm, the Marauders Map, Hogsmeade, Quidditch Cup Champions, Pettigrew's betrayal, fighting a Werewolf, time travel, Prongs, freeing his Godfather, the Quidditch World Cup, the Dark Mark, his visions, the lesson on Unforgivables, Malfoy the Ferret, the Triwizard Tournament, out flying a Hungarian Horntail, the golden egg, the Yule Ball, using Gillyweed and displaying Moral Fibre, Barty Crouch Senior, the Maze, the portkey, Cedric's murder, the resurrection of Lord Voldemort, Priori Incantatem, the imposter Moody, Fudge's incompetence and denial.

 _Kill the past…LET IT GO…kill the past…all you draw from it is weakness…KILL THE PAST_

The worst summer of his life, Big D, the dementor attack, being expelled…kind of, the Order of the Phoenix, Grimmauld Place, Kreacher, the Trial, quality time with Sirius Black, Dolores Umbridge, Dumbledore's avoidance, the Educational Decrees, the D.A., Arthur Weasley's attack, his link with Voldemort, Neville's parents, Occlumency torture with Snape, Grawp, D.A. betrayal, Headmistress Umbridge, Hogwarts fights back, OWLS, the false vision, the mission to the Department of Mysteries, prophecy, the death of his friends, meeting Death, going back in time.

A single tear escaped Harry Potter's left eye and slowly made its way down his face before falling on his trembling lips. Thinking about his past was mental torture, for it is untouchable, unattainable, and he would never be able to return to it.

 _Kill the past_

 _Let it go_

 _Kill the past_

"I'm not strong enough," Harry whimpered to himself, "I-I-I can't."

As if the Gods heard him themselves, a new set of images flew into his mind. The Horcruxes, his destiny to confront Voldemort, the Peverell Brothers, his legacy, the Deathly Hallows, his mother Lily Evans, his father James Potter, the Marauders, Peter's loyalty to Remus, Alice and Frank healthy and in love, Marlene's outspoken nature, the always entertaining Black Sisters, Sirius the Bachelor back in his prime, Xeno being so much like Luna, Saphira, his stolen moments with Emmy, and finally finding his place within the Wizarding World.

A sense of peace came upon Harry as his old memories started to fade away. They were still there, but at the same time they were not. No longer did his past way heavily on his mind, as his memories only left a feeling of warmth inside his chest. Using his rudimentary occlumency skills Harry looked inside his mind and found his past memories were physically gone, all that remained was a faint imprint similar to what a ghost is compared to what they originally were in life.

 _Let it go…kill the past and look to what is yet to come_

Wiping the remnants of the single tear from his face, Harry James Ignotus Peverell straightened his robes, gripped his wand, and continued down the 7th floor corridor knowing exactly what to do next.

* * *

"I know we have been told for years that OWL year sucks, but…Merlin does it ever suck," said an exhausted Frank Longbottom as he collapsed into a large scarlet and gold loveseat.

"I think every single 5th year at Hogwarts feels the same way Frank," replied his girlfriend as she started running her fingers through his hair and massaging the head that now lay her in lap.

"Pffft! Not everyone," he replied thinking about a few select boys.

"Alright, alright, everyone except the Marauders," Alice giggled in response.

"Not even the Marauders, Alice. Peter and Remus have both been complaining about the stress… more Peter than Remus, but still both of them. But Sirius and James haven't batted an eyelash, it's almost as if they have been assigned 1st year material."

"That's not surprising if you really think about it. Sure, Sirius and James are both borderline arrogant pricks and juvenile delinquents…in the best way possible," she added quickly, because in all honesty Alice really did like the two boys despite their faults, "…but that does not take away from their intellectual capabilities. They very well could be the two smartest and magically talented wizards that have come to Hogwarts in the last 20 years."

"It's all in the bloodline," Frank conceded.

Alice gave him a questioning look.

"Right you family doesn't care for politics."

"And we are damn proud of it!" Alice teased, sticking her tongue out at Frank.

"Anyways, it's common knowledge that the Black Family is a powerhouse. But the Potters themselves are geniuses. They are the only family that could possibly rival the Black's in power and influence. Most people don't know this because the Potter's are probably the most secretive family that has ever existed; and where the Blacks are an infamously large family, the Potters are infamously small."

"That is actually really interesting," Alice admitted looking at Frank with eager eyes.

"Most of the time family history is really boring," Frank laughed, "but the Potters and Blacks are always interesting. You just have to look back a few years to see this. Arcturus Black and Charlus Potter, the grandfather and father of Sirius and James, respectively. Two of the most powerful wizards in Britain, they had the ability to leave grown men shaking in their boots, in their prime."

A brown haired blur quickly shot past the couple and took the seat across from them and joined in the conversation, "Are you taking about how absolutely badass Lord Potter and Lord Black are! Some of my grandad's favorite stories are about those two when they used to take part in the Wizengamot."

"Hey Marlene," Alice greeted her excited roomate, "what do you mean _used_ to?"

"Marlene means that they've stopped attending. It was very weird, according to my mother the two of them went from an unstoppable duo that could take on the world and win, to a pair of recluses who have not appeared publicly for years," Frank explained.

"And nobody knows why…it's soooooooo mysterious," Marlene whispered dramatically.

"There are rumours though," Frank stated, and seeing the intrigued looking faces of the girls he continued, "the Longbottom's have been allied with the Potter's for years so we have a better idea than most about what happened, but the secretive nature of the Potter family makes it so even we don't know the full story. We don't have strong ties with the Black family, so all we know are the rumours that have been circulating for years. Apparently after Lord Black's wife, Melania, got sick it nearly broke his heart and since then he has shut himself away from the public eye."

"That's so romantic," Marlene swooned, "but, I'm going to guess she didn't get better."

"Nobody knows if she's still alive," Frank answered.

"Wow…" both girls said together.

"And the Potter's?" Alice asked.

"Apparently the war against Grindelwald was very hard on Lord Potter and he fell into a type of depression. The only thing that brought him out of it was when Lady Potter had a surprise pregnancy with James. They both believed that they were too old to have children and when they found out about James it seemed to breathe new life into the family, but it also gave them another reason to keep their lives private and raise James. Again, a lot of this is here-say and guesswork from my mother and uncle so it could all end up being a pile of rubbish."

"I think it's kind of sad for Sirius, James, and their families," Alice admitted.

"Yeah, it would be nice if the real reason was that they wanted to retire and live out the rest of their lives on the French Riviera, but I doubt it. The Wizarding World is filled with tragedy… well that's what my mum says at least, and we all know how jolly she is." Frank joked.

"Don't speak like that about your mother Frank," Alice said smacking him over the head. "How has your family been lately anyways?"

"Same as always really," Frank said with no real emotion, "Mum hasn't been the same since dad died. She still keeps herself busy with her herbology in the greenhouses and apparently she's found a lot of joy in the Wizengamot lately. Something about making weak-willed idiots cry."

"That sounds just like Augusta… what a woman," Marlene sighed in admiration.

Frank laughed at that, "I'm going to have to keep her away from you Marlene, she would take you in as a protégé and then nobody would be safe," he shivered at the thought of it, Marlene was crazy enough already.

"And your uncle?" Alice asked.

"Ah, good old Algie is exciting as ever. He came over in the summer raving about some knew recruit in the Department of Mysteries."

"He still trying to persuade from the aurors?"

"Of course! Calls them a bunch of pussy-whipped dimwits who don't know which way to hold their wands and would sooner blow off their own arses than win a fight," Marlene laughed hysterically at that. "On second thought, I think I'll have to keep you away from both my mother and my uncle," he said to Marlene.

"Oh come on, that's not fair at all!" she shouted indignantly.

"But yes, it seems his goal in life is to get me to join his department," he continued as he turned back to Alice. "He's always been bitter to the aurors since his last protégé, Alastor Moody left to join them. Apparently it was like losing the child he never had, he even nicknamed him "Mad-eye" and everything. I wouldn't be surprised if he cried over it."

"That's very intense," Alice stated.

"That's tame for Uncle Algie," Frank laughed, "Anyways this knew recruit, Augustus Rookwood I think his name was, has my uncle all excited again. Algie says he grew up in Britain but was privately tutored instead of coming to Hogwarts. After getting his NEWTs he apparently went and travelled around Eastern Europe and Asia before coming back to Britain this summer. Algie says the man is brighter than normal and has decent potential to become an asset to the department, which is practically a rave review coming from my uncle."

"So in other words this guy is a genius who knows how to use his wand," Marlene said with a dirty smirk at her innuendo.

"That would be correct," Frank confirmed ignoring Marlene's joke, "to put it lightly, he can kick serious arse."

Before the conversation could continue any further, Frank heard footsteps approaching the couch from behind him.

"Lils!" Marlene called out first as she was facing the direction Lily approached them, "I haven't see you in… 50 minutes. I missed you!" she called out after checking the time with a quick _tempus_ charm.

Lily shook her head at Marlene's antics.

"Hey Lily, what has you coming over here?" Frank asked.

"Well… first I was going to ask if any of you have seen Harry today, the marauding idiots have been looking for him. Apparently he didn't show up to any of his classes today, which is weird because I have never seen him skip a class before."

"Maybe he's sick?" Alice said with a look of concern on her face.

"They said they checked the Hospital Wing and he wasn't there," Lily replied.

"His bed was empty by the time I woke up, but I'm sure he will turn up. If anybody can find him it will be the Marauders, I swear only Dumbledore knows the school better than they do."

"You're right, anyways the real reason I came over is I wanted to know if you all want to go to dinner right now. I was stuck with James and Sirius at lunch and I do not want to go through that again for supper, especially without Harry there to make it bearable."

"I'm ready to eat, are you girls good to go?" Frank asked Marlene and Alice.

They both nodded.

"Oh thank Merlin!" Lily exclaimed, "See you down there lovebirds," she teased as she grabbed Marlene and dragged her out of the common room.

Frank just laughed at his friends' quirks before following them hand-in-hand with Alice.

* * *

"You hear the rumours today?"

"No Andi, when have I ever cared or listened to rumours. Who do I look like, Narcissa?" came the sarcastic remark from Bellatrix Black.

"To be honest I thought Narcissa would have told you, she came up and told me earlier. Apparently the whole school is talking about how Harry Peverell disappeared today?"

 _Peverell disappeared?_ This caught Bellatrix's attention. "How could he have possibly disappeared?"

"Cissy told me that not a single person, or portrait even, has seen him today. His bed was empty when everyone woke up and there hasn't been a trace of him all day. Skipped all his classes, which apparently he has never done before, and missed the transfiguration and potions tests." Andromeda explained.

"Oi, what are you to talking about Harry for?" came the unmistakeable voice of the one and only Sirius Black.

"Hello cousin Sirius, I was just explaining to Bella the rumours of his alleged disappearance. What are you doing all the way over here at the Slytherin table?"

"Dearest Andromeda," Sirius smirked as he gave her a dramatic bow, "as much as I despise the silver and green of this table I could not pass up the opportunity of asking the beautiful Cassandra Shafiq to this upcoming Hogsmeade weekend."

"And her response?" Andromeda questioned.

"She accepted of course, who would refuse?" Sirius looked horrified at the thought.

"Poor girl," Bellatrix cut in.

"Oh, hello Bella. I did see you there, but I tried my best to ignore you," Sirius chirped.

"Your manners are just as terrible as always, but I wouldn't expect any less from a bloodtraitor," she shot back.

Sirius and Andromeda both stiffened at her words, "Well I wouldn't expect any less from a deplorable person like you _cousin_ Bella, and it's not like I haven't heard that word used before," he replied sarcastically.

"I'm not talking about blood purity you halfwit, I am talking about being a true bloodtraitor."

Andromeda stiffened at the word again, but Sirius only looked on in confusion.

"A bloodtraitor Sirius, **blood** and **traitor**. Put the two words together and you get Sirius Black. You know what… I think it would be better if you changed your name to Sirius White," Bellatrix giggled at her own joke.

"What are you talking about," Sirius' voice dropped to a low growl.

"Well you obviously want nothing to do with the Black family, what better way to show how much of a bloodtraitor you are then to change your name to the opposite of Black. It would be almost poetic actually," she said sweetly with an underlying tone of anger.

"Bella…not here, please," Andromeda begged her sister, "this is a family matter, it should be conducted in private."

"No!" Bellatrix almost snapped, "He needs to hear this right now, besides if it was considered a family matter I hardly think he would attend."

"Get to the point Bellatrix," Sirius grounded out through his teeth.

"The point is that you, Sirius White, are a bloodtraitor, you have turned your back on your family, your own blood, and you have disgraced the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black."

"Oh please, save me the dramatics Walburga," Sirius snapped.

"That right there is what I'm talking about, Sirius White. You are the Heir of Black, start acting it. Like it or not, you are the first born of the main line and it is up to you to carry on the legacy of our family."

"What family?" Sirius mocked.

 _SMACK_

Bellatrix's hand was stinging and Sirius looked as if he had seen McGonagall walk by completely starkers, but she continued on anyways, "How dare you! I know how you feel about your treatment from our family and our _dark_ and _evil_ ways, but if you ever pulled your head out of your arse you would see how prejudiced you really are."

"Prejudiced!?" Sirius cried out incredulously, "Have you seen our family."

"No, I don't think you have ever taken the time to actually look at our family."

Silence settled over them all.

Just as Sirius was about to speak, Bellatrix cut him off, "Do you think Andromeda is dark or evil?" Sirius was about to answer, but Bellatrix cut in again, "How about sweet little Narcissa, who idolizes the Marauders? What about Aunt Dorea, James' mother? What about Uncle Alphard? How about your little brother Regulus?"

Sirius stopped with his mouth open before he closed it. A myriad of emotions passed his face before he opened his mouth and answered, "Exceptions."

"Exceptions?" Bellatrix wanted to laugh at his stubbornness. "Your prejudice continues to amaze me, Sirius White. How many exceptions do you need before you realize that your conception of our family is broken. You are the Heir. I don't know what Arcturus sees in you, but the amount of faith that man has in you is incredible."

"Well, Arcturus is a sadistic old bastard who's bloody barmy," Sirius mumbled.

"Well we can agree on that," Bellatrix laughed, "...but how terrible a man can he be if his closest friend is Charlus Potter, the father of your best mate."

As Sirius sat there allowing Bellatrix's words to sink in, she decided to put an end to their conversation. "The Black family has inspired awe and fear in the hearts of many for hundreds of years Sirius, you have both the opportunity and the potential to lead a dynasty. Sure Walburga is harsh on you and your father has never shown any interest in your wellbeing, but don't project your own problems on the rest of the family. Actually listen to Arcturus or Aunt Cassiopeia when you see them and maybe you will understand why our family is the way it is and why we do what we do. The world is not Black or White, Sirius. But always remember that in the Wizarding World it pays to be Black, and maybe then you will understand the importance of our blood."

"Come on Andi," Bellatrix stood from the Slytherin table with her sister and they made their way out of the Great Hall leaving a pensieve Sirius behind.

"Merlin's beard you two are insane!" Andromeda said while rubbing her temples, "You lot are so lucky that I used the family magic to put up a silencing ward at the table, otherwise the rumour mill wouldn't give a flying broomstick about where Peverell disappeared to, and the whole school… actually no, the whole of Wizarding Britain would be talking about your family dispute with Sirius _White_ ," she said with a raised eyebrow.

Bellatrix flushed in embarrassment at how terribly that situation could have gone, "I will be sure to remind the family how lucky we are to have someone as smart as you, sister…and are you telling me that you didn't like what I did with his name?"

"It's not that, it just reminded how similar you are to Arcturus sometimes. I still think you spend too much time with him."

"Sirius is wasting a valuable resource; why should I pass up on the extra time he has since his heir is too busy being a Marauder."

"Speaking of the Marauders, you owe me 3 galleons," Andi said suddenly.

"What?"

"At the opening feast you said that Peverell would be fooling around with the Marauders within a month. With the rumours going around today I found out from Narcissa that he didn't partake in any pranks until the end of October, therefore you owe me 3 galleons."

"That is ridiculous, I refuse," Bellatrix folded her arms across her chest childishly.

Andromeda simply raised her eyebrow at Bellatrix again, and she relented. "Take your bloody 3 galleons and remind me to never bet with you ever again, you always win."

"Perks of dating a muggleborn Hufflepuff," Andromeda smirked, "you should try it sometime Bella, using a broom closet is good for the soul... well, it's good for releasing hormones at least. You could do with some hormone releasing, maybe then you wouldn't be so uptight all the time."

Bellatrix tried to hit her with a stinging charm but Andromeda easily blocked it. Meeting her sister's frosty gaze made Andromeda laugh, "I'll see you around Bella, I am off to find Ted for my next _betting_ lesson," she winked as she gracefully made her way down the hall.

 **AN**

 **I just managed to get this chapter out before midnight in my timezone so it is still 2017 for me! Anyways, what better way to start the New Year than with an update! I hope everyone has had a great holiday so far and I wish you all a great 2018.**

 **I don't really make resolutions for New Years because I find them useless, especially since most people break them after a week. So I will not be making an resolutions this year, but I can say with confidence that I will continue this story (for better or worse) and I will complete it.**

 **In other news, I have come up with ideas for three more stories. One involves everyone's favourite vela, Fleur Delacour. The other involves a certain red-haired witch (I won't say which witch) but I can tell you that she has been serially underused for a character with sooooooo much potential (I personally thought she would have been a great witch for Harry to end up with in canon). There is a third story that I have thought about and it involves my favourite fanfic character Daphne Greengrass, but seeing as it is my favourite pairing I want to do it justice and I want the story to epic (i.e. multi-year, complete AU, OC's, etc.). Let me know if you would be interested in these stories and if you want me to start them while I am still writing INGAE or if you would rather me finish INGAE first.**

 **Spread that holiday cheer and leave me a review about your thoughts on the new fic ideas, how you feel about this story so far, and any questions or suggestions you have.**

 **I think that is it for now... so goodbye 2017 and welcome 2018. Oh, and a new update for this story should be coming in the next few days if all goes to plan.**


	15. Chapter 15

"AAAAGGH! Why can I not do it!" screamed Bellatrix as she threw her dark wand across an abandoned classroom in the dungeons in a fit of rage. "Peverell makes it look so bloody easy… nothing, NOTHING works! That blonde bimbo can do it too! I just wish I could go back in time and slap that stupid smile off her face when she told her friends about her _private session with Harry_ … thinking she knows more than me, thinking she, SHE is a better WITCH than ME!" Bellatrix ranted to herself as she stomped across the room to retrieve her wand.

"HOW?!" she screeched out, asking the same question she had for the past month, "how do you do this Merlin damned spell!"

" _It's all about happiness, pure joy…"_ she mocked to herself. "What a bunch of dragon dung, that's the last time I'm going to Peverell for any sort of help… bloody useless moron."

"Just one more time, you'll get it Bella, try it one more time. Calm down, clear your mind and you will get it just like every other spell you have ever tried… just remember Arcturus' words," she coached herself.

 _You are a hot tempered witch Bellatrix, full of passion and life, the magic of the Black blood is strong in your veins. Remember that… take pride in that. Some call our family insane, they are fools. Insanity does not befit a true member of the house of Black, insanity is for those who lack control and those who lack control have no place in our legacy. That is why I will personally teach you Occlumency child, for there is no better way of gaining control than through mastery of the mind. This is the foundation of every powerful witch and wizard, and if you excel in it… nothing will be beyond your reach Bellatrix, nothing._

Clearing her mind, Bellatrix gripped her wand with her right hand as she prepared to cast. Happy memories that she previously used flowed into her mind: reading her first book on magic, getting her beautiful walnut and dragon-heartstring wand, coming first in her year when she started in Hogwarts, her first trip into the restricted section at the age of 12, being given access to the Black Family Library, reading her first tome on magic banned by the ministry, her private lessons with Arcturus. She snarled as she threw those memories out of her head, as they had all failed her in the past.

After regaining her composure, her mind wandered to other memories. Looking up to her older sister Andromeda, teaching and looking after young Cissy, being praised and appreciated by the Black Family, the first time she looked into a mirror and noticed the firm and dangerously beautiful body she was growing into, gossiping and mock-dueling with her sisters over the holidays. As an emotion she rarely felt welled up inside her, she closed her eyes and spoke the incantation.

A bright mist shot out of her wand and formed a shield around her body, which continued to grow stronger as seconds passed.

Opening her eyes, Bellatrix saw the misty shield and her failure immediately registered in her mind. An uncontrollable rage erupted from deep inside her, killing her patronus immediately.

Had she looked properly Bellatrix would have noticed that her shield was slowly shifting into a concentrated cloud, and within that cloud a small creature was coalescing. Unfortunately, she did not.

"AAAAAAIIIIIIIEEEE!" Bellatrix let out a bloodcurdling scream that accompanied a blast of magic which destroyed a nearby desk. Not even a split second later Bellatrix was casting every piece of offensive magic she could at the far wall. Each passing curse became stronger, darker and more dangerous. Most of what she was casting were curses that she had perfected over the summer, others she usually struggled with but were now being cast flawlessly.

As she neared a point of absolute fury, spells that she had only read about and never casted before were flying from her wand as if she had been casting them for years. With one final release of cursed fire that she learnt from a Black Family private tome, Bellatrix collapsed to her knees from exhaustion.

Sweat glistened from her brow as her palms pressed against the stone floor of the dungeon in an attempt to steady herself as she panted and wheezed from over exerting herself. A shiver raked through her body as the cold from the approaching Scottish winter seeped into the classroom. There was a mad gleam in her violet eyes, like an untamed dog who just had the chase of his life and could not wait for another go.

The dungeon was eerily silent with only soft breathing and the odd _sizzle_ or _crack_ from the magical residue of the destroyed furniture and stonework that littered the room breaking the peace.

Suddenly, there was a new noise that echoed within the cold stone walls. It sounded like a weak wheeze, but it gradually evolved into a distinguishable giggle. Slowly this giggle turned into full blown laughter that seemed completely out of place in the dungeons of Hogwarts where the snake pit of Slytherin resided.

"Who n-needs a stupid pa-p-patronus when they can do that…" she interrupted herself as another bought of giggles ripped out of her mouth, "th-that is what magic is all about…the power, the high, the feeling of superiority."

She sucked in a long breath before continuing, "Who cares what they can do, when I can do this. They can't do it. _She_ can't do it. I'm the better witch, I can achieve anything."

 _Those who lack control have no place in our legacy_

Arcturus' words echoed in her mind and sent a cold shiver down her spine. Dread settled within her stomach as she realized what just happened.

"I just lost control," she muttered to herself. "I lost control again, this can't keep happening. Black blood flows through my veins, I must keep control… for myself and for our family."

Running her fingers through her thick locks, Bellatrix tried to calm herself. Crossing her legs, Bellatrix settled herself and began running through the meditation techniques her grandfather had taught her before beginning Occlumency. Time seemed to slow as she entered her own mind putting out each stray thought as if blowing out a candle.

After what felt like hours, Bellatrix stood and brushed down her Slytherin robes before tucking some of her dishevelled hair behind her left ear. Checking the time with her wand she realized that she had missed dinner, but it did not bother her as she wasn't hungry.

Exiting the classroom, she started the short walk to the Slytherin common room in the hopes that she might be able to finish her Herbology paper before settling down for the night.

However, the Herbology paper would look as if it would have to wait, because Bellatrix was approaching the common room at the same time as Rodolphus Lestrange and his friends who were returning from dinner.

"Ah, beautiful Bellatrix you are just the witch I have been looking for?" he started.

Expecting some time of comment from Rodolphus, Bellatrix barely spared him a look before coolly responding, "Why would that be, Rudy?"

A small smirk graced her lips when Rodolphus stiffened. 'Merlin he hates that nickname,' she thought.

"Not everything is as nefarious as you make it out to be Bellatrix, all I wanted to do was commend you on your performance in the Great Hall the other day."

"What performance?"

"Must I spell it out for you, I was referring to your treatment of that bloodtraitor cousin of yours," he drawled in response.

"Yes, well I thought Sirius deserved a wake-up call," she answered honestly.

"That was one hell of a wake-up call Black, I'm pretty sure he's still wearing that handprint on his face," Rowle joked as he and Rabastan broke into rather annoying laughter.

"Seeing as the male population of Hogwarts is dominated by thick idiots I needed a more direct way of getting his attention," she cut back.

"You should have cursed him," Rabastan growled.

"And what would that have accomplished?" she asked condescendingly.

Rabastan simply shrugged in response.

Bellatrix scoffed at his simplicity.

"As visibly entertaining that display was, _we_ were wondering what exactly you two discussed?" Lucius finally spoke up.

"That would be a Black family matter Lucy," Bellatrix dismissed.

Lucius had no visible reaction to the nickname, but Bellatrix was certain she caught a slight tightening of his jaw.

"That's no fun Bella, can't you tell just a little bit," Rodolphus did his best to sound charming, "I'm sure it was not a matter of utmost secrecy."

Bellatrix once again was thankful that Andromeda was quick enough to throw up the secrecy spell before any of the more juicy bits of conversation were overheard. This allowed Bellatrix to control what people found out and twist the information to suit her own needs.

"We had a discussion on his actions as a bloodtraitor and the importance of the Black family in Wizarding Society," Bellatrix paused before continuing, "I then reminded him of his duties as heir to the family."

"It is tragic how the Black family is being treated by that disgrace of an heir," Lucius commented with what sounded like genuine anger in his voice.

"Despite my disapproval of his actions there is not much I can do other than remind him of what truly is important," Bellatrix stated in a way that would surely boost her image in the eyes of the Slytherin boys.

"And what is truly important Miss Black," Lucius' voice took a serious tone.

Bellatrix was not expecting this much questioning, but then again it made sense that they would want to clarify her ambiguous statement.

"The importance of maintaining power," she replied, "the Black family has been dominant for hundreds of years, I see no reason for this to change anytime soon."

"That is… very good to hear Bellatrix," Rodolphus said as a look of satisfaction crossed his face. "Perhaps we could speak more about this on a later date, we have a mutual _friend_ who thinks quite similar to how we do."

Realizing this might be the information she had been looking for, Bellatrix knew immediately what her answer would be. "Of course," Bellatrix responded trying her best to keep a neutral tone.

"Brilliant," Rodolphus smiled, "I hope to be seeing you soon Bellatrix."

"Cunning," Bellatrix spoke aloud, causing the plain stone wall they were standing in front of to transform into a passageway. She gave the Slytherin boys a nod of acknowledge before making her way into the Slytherin common room and then directly into her dorm room.

'Merlin, you better buy me an extra nice Yule gift this year Andromeda, for getting me into this mess,' Bellatrix thought to herself as she quickly undressed and hopped into bed completely forgetting about her Herbology paper.

* * *

"It's been 4 days Lily, how am I not supposed to be freaking out right now!" shouted James Potter.

"I don't know Potter, but can you please stop pacing around like a madman, I am trying to study."

"How are you so calm! Are you honestly not worried about what's happened to him?"

Lily sighed deeply, "What else can I do Potter, nobody has seen him. The teachers have been looking for him every chance they get, even Dumbledore has been personally looking for him and none of them have found him."

Deep down, Lily was actually terrified. Sure, if any of her friends went missing she would worry for them, but this went beyond that. It felt like she was being stabbed repeatedly in her lower stomach each moment they could not find him, and it worried her. Why was it affecting her so much? She had no answer to this question and she did not want anybody to see how affected she truly was, so she pretended that it did not bother her. However, secretly she had been taking much longer and different routes to each class in the naïve hope that she might find him on the way.

"Listen…Lily. I know this castle probab-actually, no, I do know this castle better than anybody else. Better than Dumbledore and better than Filch, and I have not been able to find him."

"You sound a little full of yourself there Potter," Lily scoffed.

James gave her an indistinguishable look that slightly unsettled her. "I'm not playing around Lily, I'm not bragging, I am just stating the truth. The fact that I have not found him is deeply disturbing," he sighed as he sank to the floor.

Lily looked at James with a bit of pity, "Potter. Look, umm maybe you haven't checked everywhere. It is a pretty big castle and maybe you missed a place."

"I haven't missed a place, I've looked everywhere!" James snapped.

Lily actually took a step back at the raw anger in his voice.

Realizing what he just did, James' face instantly melted into a look of regret. "I-I, uh, I'm so sorry Lily! I lost control, I didn't mean to snap at you. It's just so, s-s-so frustrating. I should be able to find him… I _have_ to find him. I feel like it's my fault we don't know where he is."

Lily finally understood just how hard the situation was hitting James. She was actually happy that someone else, even if it was James Potter, felt the same way. Realizing this, Lily decided to open up a bit as well.

"Listen, James. I uh haven't told anybody this, but his disappearance has hit me hard as well," seeing the unconvinced look on James' face she continued, "I know that I, well, haven't shown how much its bothered me but trust me it has. I don't really know how to describe it… but it hurts. For some reason it hurts that somehow he disappeared from the school without a trace and nobody knows how or what happened to him. Nobody has probably noticed this, but I've been taking different routes to each class and have even show up late a few times because I hope I might stumble across him."

James looked up through his messy black hair his hazel eyes met Lily's emeralds with a look she couldn't place. Running his hands through his already messy hair James spoke up, "Me, Sirius, Peter, and Remus have been looking for him the past 3 nights. We got Frank to tell us which prefects and teachers were on duty and what routes they were taking on patrol before we left the common room to search for him after curfew. We searched until about three in the morning each time before coming back in to sleep. But each night I waited until they fell asleep before going back out and searching again."

James paused at this point for a few seconds before covering his face with his hands.

"I haven't slept for almost 4 days straight now Lily…" he trailed off.

Lily gasped, "surely… you must have-…"

"92 hours straight it's been," a tired grin crossed his face.

"James, th-that's not healthy at all," Lily admonished.

"He's my friend Lils… he's family. I was going to invite him to spend Christmas with the Potter's," James said.

"I'm sure he would like that a lot, especially since he has nowhere else to go," Lily replied as she took a seat on the carpet next to James.

"I jus-I-I just need to find him. Good Godric what if he got sick, h-h-had some type of medical emergency and nobody could get to him. Gosh Lily, he could be lying someplace that nobody would ever find him again. All because I CAN'T DAMN FIND HIM MYSELF," he punched the ground at this.

"James," Lily pleaded, "you can't blame yourself. It is completely out of your control. You have done more than almost the entire school combined, if anything you should be proud of yourself."

"Proud of myself for what," James scoffed, "for not being able to find my friend."

"You should be proud of yourself, because... I am proud of _you_ ," Lily admitted as she placed her hand over top of his clenched fist. In all honesty, Lily was very proud of James. The amount of love and dedication he had towards his friends was heartwarming. Seeing him place the blame on his shoulders saddened her. All she wanted to do was let him know how good of a person he was and that she didn't blame him, nor did anybody else.

James tilted his head to the side and looked at Lily with tears in his eyes, "Did you know that nobody has officially gone missing at Hogwarts in over 200 years, and that the longest that a person has ever gone missing was 2 days. Or that in 7 out of the last 8 instances of somebody disappearing in Hogwarts the student turned up dead…" James' voice drifted off.

"Where did you learn this?"

"Hogwarts: A History," he answered softly. "Shite book and boring as hell, but I read it anyways. I read it just to learn some stupid statistics about how my friend has a 7 out of 8 chance of turning up dead."

"All that means is that he'll be the 1 out of 8 who survives. Just wait and see, he'll turn up okay and all of us will be laughing about this in the future," Lily spoke encouragingly as she squeezed James' hand in reassurance.

"Gods Lily what would I do without you," James breathed out.

"You would probably be living a boring life with a lot less shouting in it," she tried to joke.

James' lip quivered in amusement, "You just further proved my point." Upon saying this, James turned his head and slowly burrowed it into Lily's shoulder.

Lily was momentarily stunned, until she felt warm splotches seeping through her shirt. James was crying. For a moment Lily had an internal panic attack, this was something she thought she would never see. The charismatic, cheeky, arrogant, infallible James Charlus Potter was crying… on her shoulder no less. Shaking away these thoughts Lily reacted on instinct and did what she thought was best, she wrapped her thin arms around James' shoulders and held onto him tightly, letting him know that she was there to support him.

In response to this, James somehow managed to bring himself even closer and tighter to Lily as more and more tears soaked their way through Lily's clothing.

The two of them sat there, in an out of the way corner of the Gryffindor common room for hours until Lily realized that James and fallen asleep on her shoulder.

Seeing James look so peaceful and not wanting to disturb the rest he had denied himself for days, Lily continued to sit beside him trying her best to simultaneously ignore the feeling of hurt in her lower abdomen and the fluttering in her chest. That was until she eventually fell asleep as well.

* * *

Sirius Black walked in a daze, one that had not left him for days. Sure he still went to class, joked with the Marauders and flirted with girls but none of it felt real. It was like walking through a fog so thick that you couldn't see a hippogriff until it had already run you over.

Nothing he tried seemed to be able to shake this feeling. He tried a cold shower, he tried using his pitiful Occlumency skills, hell he even tried jumping into the freezing cold Black Lake.

Was he truly a bloodtraitor? He never cared when he was called the word before, he actually took pride whenever Lucius Malfoy and his ilk called him the name. But now, for some reason he couldn't shake this _weird_ feeling he got whenever he thought about that word, this feeling of…of _shame_.

"Bloody fucking Bellatrix messing with my head like always," he mumbled to himself as he continued his walk.

Did he truly turn is back on his family, betray them? No. No he couldn't have, his family betrayed _him_. They never understood him, always degraded him… they took one look at him and threw him away like trash. But did they? Did they always not care for him, or was there something else? Was he a bloodtraitor?

Was he a **bloodtraitor** …

The same question ran through his mind over and over again, driving him mad.

"Well, they say that Black family is filled with maniacs. I guess I fit right in then," he joked to himself in a self-deprecating manner.

A traitor of blood… not magical blood, but his own blood. The blood of his family, the blood of his ancestors, the blood of Black.

The same thoughts swirled around in his mind like a vortex, "If this is what it feels like to go mad, I hope somebody offs me," he admitted to himself.

Did he ever give his family a chance, did he ever consider them family, or did he write them off the moment he was first able to think for himself.

Were his family even that bad? NO, of course they were, why else would people be terrified of them, why else would their name be stigmatized just as much as it was respected. It had to be that way.

Did it? Or did it have to be that way in order to fit Sirius' view of his family.

The Wizarding World is filled with self-serving idiots who struggle to clean up their own waste, let alone think properly for themselves… at least that's what his grandfather would say. It would make sense that they would speak that way about the Black family, they were jealous of their prestige and power… they did not understand their way.

"Do I even understand our way?" Sirius questioned himself.

Bellatrix certainly did not think so, she definitely made that point quite clear.

Sirius' hand tenderly touched his cheek where she had slapped him. It still hurt. The physical pain and the outline of her hand faded after a few minutes, but it did not completely disappear. The pain still lingered, just like the haze he was living in. Sirius knew that it was all taking place inside his own head… but did that make it any less real?

Sirius thought back to how is family had treated him… did they always show him such scorn? Was he always referred to as the White Sheep of the Black family.

 _Sirius White_

The name bounced around the confines of his mind. Teasing him, mocking him, reminding him of his failure… of his loneliness.

Sirius released a vicious growl before punching the stone wall with all his might.

 _Crack_

Unsurprisingly the wall was unaffected, but Sirius' hand was another story. He would need to visit the hospital wing in the morning, but he wasn't worried. He did not feel the pain, there was no physical pain in the haze… only mental.

Was he in the wrong? Could he have judged his family too soon due to his prejudice? Arcturus was a crazy old man who believed in blood superiority and actively practiced dark magic, but he was friends with the Potter's. Could he have misjudged him? But his beliefs were just so… _wrong_ in Sirius' eyes, that is why he distanced himself from his grandfather. He wanted nothing to do with him, he did not want to be the heir of a family that endorsed such beliefs and practices.

Why was he still the heir? That was a question that burned him inside. His mothe-no, Walburga had all but disowned him and his fa-Orion never once defended him. The rest of his family, save Dorea and Alphard, had gradually given up on him but Arcturus never did. What did his grandfather want with him?

Why did his family do what they did? Why was it so important that the Black family, _Toujours Pur_ , had to inspire such fear in people?

There were members, _former_ members, of the Black family that were never to be mentioned. Squibs for one, but that came as no surprise as they were generally dismissed by all witches and wizards for they had no place in their world. Then there were those who married muggles, once again Sirius was able to accept that. The Black family had no tolerance towards those who married muggles, it only diluted the power of the magic that was found in their blood. Sure, the power could be restored in a few generations time but there was no room for weakness in the Black family. Those who lost their sanity were not to be mentioned either, as they were not worthy to carry on the name of Black.

There was one more category that always caught Sirius' attention. The two most recent members who had joined were his relatives Scorpius and Taurus. These two had joined Grindelwald in his bid to conquer Europe and subjugate muggles and were a force to be reckoned with. It was said that they were initially tolerated and were allowed to join whatever cause they cared for, but that changed when Arcturus declared his opposition to Grindelwald as Lord Black. They were given the chance to rejoin their family, but they denied.

 **Bloodtraitors** is what they were called.

Traitors to their own blood, who officially opposed their Lord and Head of House and took the opportunity to fight against their own family. They turned their back on their own blood and had no problems with spilling it.

The story goes that Arcturus was beyond furious and took this insult to the family personally. It was said that he took his personal regiment that he commanded alongside Charlus Potter and personally hunted for Scorpius and Taurus. It took months to finally track the two down, deep in Albania, and the battle that ensued was one of the bloodiest in the entire war. Men on both sides were butchered until only Charlus, Arcturus and a handful of their men remained. Together they managed to take down Scorpius and Taurus, but nobody officially knows what happened to the two of them after that. Sirius could guess that it involved an empty building, Arcturus, his wand, and a lot of pain. Mentioning Scorpius and Taurus in the presence of a Black family member, especially Arcturus, was one of the dumbest things a person could do other than insulting a hippogriff or tickling a sleeping dragon.

The punishment for these bloodtraitors was the removal of their existence from the Black family. They were not burned off the tapestry like other disgraced members, they were completely eliminated. The Black family would pull strings and use all of its resources to eliminate both their Ministry and Gringotts records as well. If someone searched for anything related to Scorpius or Taurus Black, they would be told that those two never existed. The only place that contained any sort of record was in the Hogwarts archives. Through the Sorting Hat, The Quill of Acceptance, and The Book of Admittance, the existence of every student who studied at Hogwarts is magically recorded in their archives and cannot be deleted.

A cold chill travelled down Sirius' spine… was this what he was destined for? Would he be labelled a bloodtraitor by the Black family? When Bellatrix called him a bloodtraitor in the Great Hall it cut deep, he wished that she was speaking about blood purity and not his treatment of his family. He played the part of the ignorant fool hoping, praying that she wouldn't think that lowly of him… but apparently she did.

It was eating Sirius up on the inside and not even shagging the prettiest bird in Hogwarts could get his mind out of the haze. That is why Sirius told his friends that he was going out tonight to search for their missing Marauder, when in reality he just needed to walk. That is how Sirius ended up wandering the hallways of Hogwarts with nothing but his own torturous thoughts to keep him company.

Could he turn his back on his family? Arcturus, Dorea, Alphard, Andromeda, Narcissa, his brother Regulus... _Regulus._

"Reggie?" Sirius half whispered as the haze seemed to lift slightly. "Reggie?!" he called out this time in a louder tone.

A dark figure with curly black hair and stormy grey eyes slowly turned around. As the light from his _lumos_ spell illuminated the surrounding area, it revealed a face that was quite similar but slightly less handsome than his older brother's.

"What do you want Sirius?" came the cold question from the 4th year Slytherin.

"W-wh-what are you doing out here?" Sirius managed to ask.

"I was taking a book out of the library, what does it look like I'm doing you dolt."

"The library…?" Sirius mumbled to himself. Looking around Sirius finally realized that he was standing in front of the entrance of the Hogwarts Library. As he regained his bearings, the haze seemed to lighten up a little bit more.

"Yes the library, are you daft Sirius?" Regulus sneered.

"No, no, not daft," he replied, "… maybe a little mad though," he added quietly as an afterthought.

"What?" Regulus snapped.

"Don't uh worry about it," Sirius dismissed.

"Whatever Sirius," his brother stated as he turned to leave.

"Wait!" Sirius put a hand up as he called his brother back.

"What do you want Sirius?" came the same cold question.

"I, uh-umm wanted to know uh, how you are doing?"

"You wanted to know how I am doing?"

"I uh… yeah," Sirius confirmed. He hated sounding like such an idiot, as he usually had no trouble speaking to anybody. This was his little brother for God's sake, yet he could barely string together a sentence without sounding like a twit. 'Damn this haze, damn my madness, and damn my stupid fucking family!' Sirius ranted in his mind.

"Is this some type of joke Sirius?" Regulus laughed in a manner that could freeze _Fiendfyre_. " **You** want to know how **I** am doing?" Regulus continued as his laughter continued.

His brother's laughter hurt Sirius more than he would like to admit, "Reggie…" he pleaded only to be cut off.

" **Don't** call me that!" he snapped. "Don't you dare call me _Reggie_ , you lost that privilege years ago Sirius."

Sirius had nothing to say, there was nothing he could say. So all he did was stand in silence and listened to what his brother had to say.

"Do you really care about how I'm doing?" Regulus asked, shaking his wild curly in frustration, "When was the last time you cared? Last year? The year before, or was it the year before that? Actually, wait…I know, it was four years ago. It's been four years since you last asked me how I'm doing."

Sirius just continued to stare.

"Oh? Nothing to say, well what a surprise. You usually have something witty to say, the great Sirius Black. The charming, charismatic, handsome victim of the dark and evil Black family. The womanizer, the Marauder… aren't you just soooo special," he mocked.

"Reggi-Regulus, I just wanted to know how you're doing, I don't see you that often," Sirius tried.

"Oh, you haven't seen me in a while," Regulus feigned surprise, "I forgot how busy your schedule must be being Sirius Black. Should I make an appointment?"

Before Sirius could answer he cut in again, "You know Sirius, Andromeda made time. Bellatrix made time too, hell even Cissy made time for me and she spends almost every waking hour of the day giggling and gossiping with Aurora Sinistra. They didn't forget about me… they didn't ignore their family. I'm their cousin Sirius, their _cousin,_ and you're my _brother_ and you couldn't give two shits about me."

"Reggie, I do care," Sirius answered honestly.

"Really Sirius, do you really. I saw what happened in the Great Hall the other day," he started, "I know Bellatrix ripped into your treatment of our family, I know she reminded you of your duties as heir. But I was put into Slytherin for a reason, I'm no a fool, I don't believe for one second that one slap to the face will change a man. Maybe she got your attention, maybe she woke you up... but then again maybe she didn't. I just hope it hurt like hell, because you deserved it."

Sirius unconsciously rubbed his cheek before answering, "It did."

Regulus chuckled, "Well that's a relief."

Sirius gave a small laugh as well. They only shared a very brief moment together but it was enough to show that they were once brothers, and that cleared more of the haze from Sirius' mind.

"Listen Reg, I was being honest… how are you doing?"

"I'm doing good Sirius," Regulus sighed as he answered, "I have friends Sirius, Cyrus Greengrass, Barty, Severus…"

"Snape!?" that got Sirius' attention, "You're friends with _Snivellus_?"

"Yes Sirius I am," Regulus cut off his rant, "I don't care what your opinion of him is. He's taken more care for me at Hogwarts than you have, and we share similar interests."

"Pfft! Yeah, the Dark Arts," Sirius retorted.

"Potions. Sirius, we mostly talk about potions," he answered stiffly, "but yes we discuss magic that isn't taught hear at Hogwarts as well, which you would probably consider the Dark Arts."

"Snivellus is teaching my brother the Dark Arts, I'll curse the git!" Sirius grounded out to himself in rage.

"You will leave him alone Sirius!" Regulus shouted, "Your prejudice is annoying and I want no part of it! He isn't _teaching_ me anything, we research and theorize together. Sure, Severus is enamoured by the Dark Arts and treads dangerously in areas he shouldn't mess with, but I am there to keep him in line. I am simply continuing to educate myself in areas that our family has introduced to us from a young age."

"Ridiculous…" Sirius mumbled. He hated this, he hated being reminded about his family and everything he wanted no part of.

"Is it really, Sirius?" Regulus asked. "Is that why you stopped talking to me, stopped caring about me, because I was sorted into Slytherin and took an interest in our family's legacy? You shut me out because I wasn't the perfect _little Reggie_ , because I didn't fit the narrative of your perfect little world where you are the hero and the rest of us are the villains."

"It's not like that Regulus!" Sirius shouted.

"Then what is it like?" he asked rhetorically, "Because I have news for you Sirius, this magic that you so despise so much flows through your veins. You are a Black, Sirius, whether you like it or not, and you are the heir. Maybe if you listened to somebody for once you would realize the importance of this. There is a reason why you are still the heir and there is a reason Arcturus and Cassiopeia continually try to talk to you."

"I just don't know if I can do it…" Sirius said in a small voice.

As grey eyes connected it seemed as if time slowed to a stop.

"Then you need to figure that out Sirius." With that, Regulus cancelled his _lumos_ spell and turned to leave.

After taking a few steps in the darkness he stopped and a voice filled with nostalgia echoed through the empty hall, "All I can say is that… I miss having an older brother."

And with that the haze completely lifted.

 **AN**

 **I hope you enjoyed the latest update.**

 **This update was filled with a lot of internal struggles. We saw some of the darkness within Bellatrix, because let's be real it's no fun if she is a perfect little angel. I see young Bellatrix as a complicated character who needs a strong person in her life to keep her from succumbing to her darker nature. We see the ramifications of Sirius' wake up call in the last update as well, and how he struggles with the power of the Black family.**

 **Another important player in this story was also introduced. Regulus Black. Such a mysterious character in canon, and certainly one I am going to have a lot of fun using. I see Regulus as a slightly more serious Sirius (HA!) and one who is a sarcastic little shit (in a good way).**

 **Finally, we get to see some Lily and James bonding. I love these two characters and its a lot of fun thinking up different scenes where they can go from screaming at each other over the most idiotic thing, to spilling their hearts out to one another.**

 **Another update will be coming soon (within the week), and I promise that Harry will be back! The update after that should be the Christmas Holidays away from Hogwarts and after that the 5th year should wrap up fairly quickly.**

 **Also, in regards to the new stories about spoke about previously. I plan on making more headway in this story (half-way done at least) before starting on the new material.**

 **That is about all I have to say, let me know what you think. Reviews are lovely and I do enjoy reading them.**


	16. Chapter 16

Harry had lost track of time hours ago. At least he thought it had been hours ago, but it could well have been days at this point. Everything around him just seemed to blur together. The only thing that he could clearly differentiate, was the steady dripping of water hitting a puddle on the floor of the chamber he currently resided in. He didn't know where Saphira was, he had lost her the moment everything went tits up. That would have happened days ago, Harry was sure of that. He was starving, the only reason he was still conscious was because of the puddle of water by his head that he had taken to drinking out of. He had taken a risk coming down here and doing what he did, and on more than one occasion he questioned his sanity for doing so.

 _4 days ago…_

Harry continued his way across the 7th floor and approached the gargoyle that stood guard over the entrance to the Headmaster's office. As he drew closer to the office, Saphira's hisses were becoming more and more frantic, but suddenly the hisses stopped and then took on a cautious, questioning tone. This was because Harry turned in front of the Headmaster's office and went down a secret passage that led down to the 3rd floor. Harry looked down at Saphira and gave her a wink.

" _Companion, what is thisss about. Do not play with me?"_

" _Well Saphira, I decided I would take a look at your Queen... as long as you can guarantee my safety,"_ he added before his snake could respond.

" _Yesss, yesss, I promise you companion. My Queen still regains mossst of her control, I am certain ssshe will not harm you with her gaze."_

" _Well that is a relief,"_ Harry relaxed as he popped behind a tapestry and took another passageway that exited near the 1st floor. What he was about to attempt was a huge risk, and definitely a little bit mad. As much as he wanted to kill the damn snake for all of the trouble and pain it caused in the past, he knew there was another option. If Saphira was telling the truth, then the Basilisk was not acting of its own volition. Tom Riddle had violated the Queen of Serpents, just as he had violated so many others in his quest for power. If the snake was fighting against the darkness, then maybe he could help it and make himself a very powerful ally. The plan sounded good in theory, it was just the thought of what else might happen that left a hollow feeling in his stomach.

"Myrtle are you in here?" Harry called out as he walked into her bathroom for the first time in years. His question was followed by complete silence, occasionally broken by the clanging of pipes. "Myrtle?" he called out again, and once again there was no reply. "She must be peeping on prefects in the bathroom again," Harry reasoned out loud, laughing at the memory of Myrtle's voyeurism. That just made his job easier, as now he wouldn't have to explain the situation to the girl.

Hissing at the broken tap, the stone sink slowly moved apart revealing the entrance to the ancient chamber. Knowing that it was safe from his previous visit, Harry jumped down the opening and slid down the dirty pipe. Arriving on his feet at the bottom, Harry used his wand to clean himself up as much as possible before journeying further into the network of pipes. With only his wand illuminating the path, Harry trudged his way through water and bones as he attempted to remember the way to the chamber. After hitting a few dead-ends and doubling back to the path he assumed was correct, Harry hit a very familiar landmark. In a cavernous room that several different pipelines led into, was a very large snake skin that must have been shed many years ago. 'I wonder how often a Basilisk sheds its skin? I bet Hagrid would know,' Harry thought to himself as he climbed over it in order to continue his path.

It was only moments later that Harry exited a particularly watery pipe and found himself in front of the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets. A massive bronze door, reminiscent of those found in Gringotts, guarded what was kept beyond, perhaps it was Goblin made. Looking at it now, Harry figured it was just as impressive and intimidating as it was when he came here to save Ginny's life. Now he was here to save what he previously had killed, it sounded more and more mad each time he thought about it.

Harry hissed _open_ and watched as a silver snake slithered along the edge of the vault door, unlocking each of its bronze counterparts it passed until the door opened on its own. The moment the door opened, cool air from the chamber within washed over his face. Harry paused to gather his courage one final time, and then entered the chamber. The moment he did, magical flames on either side of the chamber flared to life, giving it an otherworldly glow. The chamber looked identical to how it did in his 2nd year, with statues of snakes poised and ready to strike lining the walls, and the massive carved face of Salazar Slytherin at the far end of the chamber.

" _Do you feel it companion,"_ Saphira asked, breaking the silence.

Harry nodded, he felt it. With his newfound sensitivity to magic Harry felt what he couldn't feel before. The chamber felt _wrong_. It reeked of darkness to the point that he almost felt sick. Harry didn't want to know what happened in here to make the chamber feel so tainted.

" _Where is you queen?"_ Harry asked, wanting to get this visit over and done with as soon as possible. He really wanted to minimize the time he spent in this place.

" _She is behind the ssstatue of the Serpent Lord. I do not know where exactly, I only ssspoke to her through the pipesss,"_ she replied as she uncoiled herself from Harry's arm and slithered up to the large statue of Slytherin.

Harry's mind flashed to another black haired student who stood in this exact position before calling to the Basilisk, " _Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts Four,"_ he hissed. There were a few seconds of silence after his command, followed by a low groaning as the stone mouth of the statue slowly opened. In preparation for what was to come next, Harry backed away from the statue and hid behind a stone pillar decorated with intertwining serpents.

" _My Queen! I have returned with help,"_ Saphira hissed excitedly, as the slithering sound of a very large serpent echoed throughout the cavernous chamber.

" _Thank you my child, I will speak to this man_ ," came the nearby sound of a motherly hiss, " _now youngling, where is this man s-_ _ **so I can rip his flesh off of his bones**_ ," the motherly tone of the Basilisk was cut off by a harsh hiss that sounded almost like a female version of Voldemort.

The second voice sent a shot of fear down Harry's spine, as he immediately shut his eyes not wanting to die before even getting a word in. " _I am here your grace,"_ Harry hissed, doing his best to keep the fear out of his voice, " _my companion, Saphira, told me of your plight and I have come to restore your health."_

" _ **A speaker?**_ " came the harsh hiss, " _ **My master told me he was the last speaker. What have you done! He**_ \- _is not my master,"_ cut in the normal voice of the Basilisk. " _The heir of my original master is a disgrace to the line of Serpent Lord's, it was why my master's magic never accepted him."_

" _What happened to you, my Queen?_ " Harry asked, curious as to what could have caused such a powerful creature to go insane.

" _You may step out young man, even with this dark leech infesting my mind I still have control over my gaze. No harm shall befall you,"_ she promised.

Opening his eyes, Harry prepared to step out from behind his cover.

Care of Magical Creatures was one of Harry's favourite classes, not only because Hagrid taught it, but because he found it genuinely interesting. That is why a lot of what he learnt in the class stuck with him. He remembered learning that the worst thing a person could do in front of a magical creature was to show it fear. The other bit of information that came to mind was something Hagrid had told him after he recalled his tale of meeting Aragog during one of his visits with the half-giant. Harry was curious as to why Aragog told Ron and himself that he was going to feed them to his children, he wanted to know why he gave them an opportunity to escape. Hagrid had told him that magical creatures that are intelligent enough to speak do not lie. Apparently there is a part of their magic that prevents them from lying. That is why Harry had no reservations of trusting the Basilisk, because he knew that it went against her magic to lie to him.

As he stepped out from behind the pillar, Harry was met with the sight of the most majestic creature he had ever seen. It looked like a completely different creature when alive and semi-healthy, compared to when it was dead on the floor. Not being scared out of his mind and being chased by the creature also made quite the difference. But looking at it now, he was finally able to truly appreciate its beauty. It had emerald skin that shimmered in the light and looked to be as thick, if not thicker than a dragon's. Harry's eyes travelled along the body of the 70-foot Basilisk, and he marvelled at the fact that he managed to kill such a beast at 12 years old. Its midsection was as thick as a tree trunk and its fangs were as long as his forearm. However, the most striking feature of the Basilisk was its glowing yellow eyes. Harry imagined that he was one of the select few people in history who managed to get a look at their deadly eyes and not have them be the last thing he ever saw.

" _See companion, did I not tell you my Queen would not harm you,_ "Saphira said smugly, hidden somewhere behind the massive body of her Queen.

" _Quiet youngling,_ " she scolded, " _I am in need of your help, speaker. The young man who came before you dabbled in forbidden magic, magic that he could not comprehend, he-_ _ **Made me stronger than ever before. I was to be his greatest weapon, used to eliminate the non-magical filth and their spawn. I am hungry, perhaps I will seek out new meet. You look to be a tasty morsel**_ ," the dark entity hissed as it bared its fangs, causing venom to drip and sizzle as it hit the floor. Harry reflexively took a step back from the now threatening Basilisk, which turned out to be a major mistake, " _ **I can smell the fear coming off you, false speaker. You will be my first victim**_ ," it threatened as it raised its head, ready to strike. Harry immediately pulled out his wand and was about to cast, " _Stop this!"_ the Basilisk commanded, and Harry slowly put his wand back down, but not away, " _I am the Queen of Serpents, this darkness has no real power over me. It cannot control me, it is nothing but a hindrance-_ _ **I have true power, I am no hindr-**_ _you are nothing but an irrelevant worm, a shadow of the darkness from that pathetic boy. As I was saying before, the boy was obsessed with power, the only other things he cared for were his heritage and immortality. Once he learnt that the Slytherin line would not accept him-_ _ **the Slytherin line would only be so lucky to have a great wizard like him become the new Serpent Lord**_ _\- the boy is nothing like Salazar, he is the Lord of nothing. Upon learning that the main Slytherin line denied him, the boy dove into the forbidden arts and found a method of immortality…"_

" _A Horcrux,"_ Harry supplied, knowing exactly how Tom Riddle had set up failsafe's in order to cheat Death. The diary was the only horcrux that Harry knew currently existed, the one inside him was gone and Nagini still had not been created. That left four others that he still needed to find, a problem that he had yet to find an answer to.

" _Yes a horcrux-_ _ **a most powerful artifact that-**_ _only a madman would create. He spent weeks in the chamber performing rituals on the vile diary he filled with his darkest thoughts, then one day he ordered me to kill a young girl-_ _ **muggleborn filth, a waste of magic who had no right to live. I took pleasure in following his orders**_ _\- I wished I could have disobeyed, but at the time I believed he was the rightful heir and future Serpent Lord, and I foolishly complied with his order. My act was the final step in the creation of his first horcrux, and that was the moment I knew I made a grave mistake. I had been fooled by a pretender, a boy with delusions of grandeur-_ _ **he is no boy, he is the most powerful wizard of all time-**_ _he was a monster. No true Serpent Lord would sink so low and attempt to secure faux immortality. No true wizard would split their own soul over a childish fear of death. It was at that point I realized what he truly was, and I refused to follow any more of his sick orders. He wanted me to go throughout the school my master had tasked me to protect, and kill children. I returned to my chamber where I promised the monster a most painful death if he ever returned. But it was too late for me, I had been tainted by his darkness and live with it to this day-_ _ **you are weak. Telling the boy about our true master, betraying his secrets. I dream of the day I have control over you, and I will force you to watch as I fulfill my masters mission…starting with you, false speaker**_ _-you are safe speaker, pay no mind to the madness of the leech."_

" _What do I need to do to help you?"_ Harry asked. It was hard for Harry to listen to the story of the Basilisk. Did Tom's evil nature know no bounds, was nobody truly safe? Helping save the Basilisk from his darkness would be a small victory, but an important one.

" _I will need to bond to a new master. I have not had a master since the Serpent Lord disappeared without a trace. Yet there are complications, as you are not from the line of Slytherin-_ _ **Yes, he is a pretender trying to steal the legacy of our noble line**_ _\- but that can be remedied. You do not have the magic of the Serpent Lords in your veins so you cannot be my master, but we can become allies of some sort. Your magic is strong enough to support me and begin my cleansing. All I will need from you is a taste of your blood-_ _ **No, no! What are you doing you fool! How can you ally yourself with such filth**_ _\- and then we shall wait for me wake from the bonding process. Beyond that, there is not much else you can do for me young speaker,"_ she explained.

" _What do you mean, your grace, is the bonding not enough? Why can I not do more?"_ he questioned, wondering to himself why nothing in his life could be sufficiently easy. There always had to be some sort of complication in order to make things interesting. As if his life wasn't exciting enough on its own.

" _No youngling, my recovery will be a long and arduous journey. Your bonding is only the first step, as I will need a lot of care if I am to ever fully regain my health and rid myself of darkness. As to why you cannot do anymore,"_ she continued, " _it is because you do not have the necessary knowledge to care for me. That is also ignoring the fact that you will be too busy to look after me, as you no doubt are a student of my master's institution. Now let us begin the bonding,"_ the Basilisk finished as she lowered her head to the floor and opened her cavernous mouth.

Swallowing his nervousness, Harry rolled up his left sleeve before using a weak cutting curse to draw a thin line of blood along his arm. Harry slowly placed his arm in between the jaws of the Basilisk, as her tongue flicked over the small incision and took in his blood. " _ **I will not let this come to pass! Die pretender, suffer the fate of the serpent!"**_ screamed the dark entity as it began to close its jaw around his arm. The sane part of the basilisk fought off the darkness, but it was not enough. The darkness had clearly been saving up its strength, as it had just enough power to cause one of the fangs to pierce Harry's arm before he could get it out of the way. " _No, speaker!"_ shouted the Basilisk in fright as the venom entered his body and Harry hit the floor in pain, " _Do not succumb to the pain, you must fight. Stay awake, speaker… you must s-stay…a-aw-w-awake…"_ the great Basilisk hissed slowly before it fell into unconsciousness, trapping Harry under its massive body.

For the second time in his life, Harry was undergoing the excruciating experience of having Basilisk Venom run through his veins. Ten seconds went by, 20 seconds, 30 and then a full minute had passed and Harry was still alive. There was no darkness encroaching his vision, no weakness, and the pain had even started to die down. It was almost as if his body was fighting the venom, almost as if he was… _immune_. It was then that Harry remembered his blood contained trace amounts of Phoenix Tears and Basilisk Venom. It still hurt like hell, but he would survive. It took another two hours until the venom was flushed out of his system and the pain completely stopped.

Time passed slowly as Harry lay trapped underneath the weight of the thousand-year-old Basilisk. He had called for Saphira numerous times, but never received an answer. She must have gotten lost, or disappeared in the initial chaos of what had happened. At least that is what he hoped. He had yet to form as strong a bond with Saphira as he had with Hedwig, but he still cared deeply for his serpent companion. Nobody knew where he was, nobody knew how to get to him, his situation was hopeless. All Harry could do was hope and pray that the Basilisk would wake up eventually, or else this would be his final resting place.

But as Harry remained in the chamber for what felt like days he had to admit to himself, there certainly were worse places to die than the mysterious Chamber of Secrets.

* * *

"You know, just looking at them you would think they're pretty pathetic," stated Sirius Black with a look of mischief in his eyes, "but the little bastards are bloody vicious!" he barked out as he watched a horde of Bowtruckle's converge on Peter.

"It's not funny Padfoot! I didn't even do anything to them, you were the one who shook their bloody tree," Peter yelped as he tried his best to fend of his miniature attackers, that seemed to take a perverse pleasure in biting and scratching him in hard to reach places.

"Ah, but that's the thing Wormy, they didn't see me do it. I thought you were a Marauder, it's not about who pulls the prank, but who is found at the scene of the crime," he stated smugly as he flipped his luscious locks over his shoulder in a way any teenage witch would be proud of.

"Laugh it up Padfoot, I promise I'll pay you back one day… bloody wanker" he muttered to himself. "Oi! C'mon guys, help me out already before I get some weird disease from these buggers. Who knows what these things carry aroun- _aiiiee_ ," he was cut off by his own shriek as the Bowtruckle's worked together to choke Peter with his own Gryffindor scarf.

"Alright, alright Wormy I'm coming," James Potter called as he slowly trudged through the low bushes at the edge of the Forbidden Forest, where the boys were currently standing, "Padfoot get your arse over here, before we have to explain to Professor Brunterra how you managed to get our friend murdered by Bowtruckles."

"Right you are Prongsie," Sirius agreed as he slung his arm around James' shoulder, "that would be an interesting story to tell, not to mention sad. I don't think Wormy would ever be able to live that one down. Oh, wait… he wouldn't have to, because he would already be dead," Sirius finished before breaking down in laughter at his own joke.

Shaking his head at his friend's antics, James unhooked himself from Sirius before pushing the laughing idiot off of him. "Alright Wormy stay still for a second," James instructed as he tried to get a clear shot at his clearly perturbed friend, " _ventus_ , there that should do it. Now let's head back before we get a detention. I don't feel like cleaning up hippogriff shit in this weather," he called out as he promptly left his friends behind and made his way back to the rest of their class.

Red-faced, Peter scampered to his feet and quickly spun around in a circle, checking to make sure there were no more Bowtruckles stuck to him. Sirius, red-faced for another reason, wiped the remnants of tears from his eyes as he approached, "Merlin, something's really got James' knickers in a twist. I mean, he should be the happiest bloke in the castle right now,"

"Why's that?" Peter asked as he did his best to wipe away the dirt on his backside.

"I walked in on him and Lily in the common room last night. They were sleeping on each other Wormy, _sleeping,"_ he gestured wildly with his hand's trying to illustrate the monumental nature of his discovery. "We have been living with James for years, and sleeping with Lily Evans has been his dream since the moment he met her on the first train ride," Sirius exaggerated. Seeing the slightly sick look on Peter's face he corrected himself, "… well maybe not that long, because that would be a little weird. But you get what I mean! He should be the happiest man in the entire school!" he shouted dramatically, "James should be skipping around like a little schoolgirl, singing his thanks to the heaven's for finally answering his prayers. But what does the moron do," Sirius paused for dramatic effect, "he walks around today as if somebody killed his favorite dog. And we all know it obviously isn't that, since I'm his favorite dog… well future dog, but that is just a technicality."

"I don't know Sirius he's been acting this way for a while now, ever since Harry disappeared. It's hit him hard. It's hit all of us hard; the entire Gryffindor common room has been super subdued the last few days. I'm pretty sure Emmeline was taken into the hospital wing a couple days ago after having a nervous breakdown or something," he shrugged before giving Sirius a questioning gaze, "you haven't noticed any of this?"

"Of course I have," Sirius replied instantly, "but I…" Sirius trailed off as he thought of an explanation, but he quickly realized he didn't have one. The truth was that he hadn't noticed any of it. He had been dealing with his own problems, and everything else just passed by in a blur. It made Sirius feel ashamed of himself, that his own issues made him ignore everything else important in his life. His friend disappeared for Merlin's sake, and he completely failed to notice how much this affected his best mate.

Peter gave his friend a sympathetic look as he put a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Come on Padfoot, let's hurry up. I agree with James, I've already shovelled enough dung to last me a lifetime."

As the two boys quickly approached the rest of the class, they realized that something was going on. Their entire Care of Magical Creatures class was huddled around Professor Brunterra. When they finally entered hearing range, they picked up the tail end of what was being said, "…emergency. Dangerous creature on the loose in the forest, and we must return to the castle immediately. Now-"

"What's going on?" Sirius whispered into James' ear as they made their way behind messy haired friend.

"Apparently some type of creature got loose in the Forbidden Forest. Hagrid reported it to the Headmaster, who ordered Brunterra to take us in before we get killed."

"Where did Hagrid go?" Peter asked as he twisted his neck and scanned the surrounding area, not finding any trace of the large Groundskeeper.

"Headed off over there," James pointed in the direction of a small clearing that led directly into the Forbidden Forest, "muttered something about hundreds of snakes moving in the grass and how that could only mean one thing."

"What thing?" Sirius cut in.

"The hell if I know," James said with a weird look in his eye, "but whatever it is must be pretty serious, because the look on Hagrid's face was scary. I've never seen him look so serious… so _angry_ , I could definitely see the giant's blood in him then."

"… there will be no fooling around. If anybody so much as steps out of line on our way back to the school, I'll see to it personally that you're cleaning out the waste of every creature here for the rest of the year," the sharp voice of their professor broke up their whispered conversation. Everyone silently nodded in acceptance, as the tone in their professor's voice made it clear that he would go through with his threat.

"Now let's move!" Brunterra called as the rest of the class followed silently. James lingered at the back of the group, fingering something hidden in his pocket. Once they had made it a reasonable distance, James suddenly paused, "Quick! Get under," he whispered to the other Marauder's as he pulled out his invisibility cloak.

Immediately, the other two boys did their best to get underneath it. The cloak was only meant to be worn by one person. Two people could fit reasonably well, but three… not so much. Sirius' elbow was sticking out from under the cloak along with Peter's knees, but it was good enough. "You're bloody lucky that Remus doesn't take this class or else we would have been caught," Sirius muttered, as a mass of cut off limbs and feet separated from the students returning to the castle.

"James what are we doing? They said that this creature is dangerous, we should head inside," Peter gulped.

"We can't," he snapped back, "… we can't go back yet. I just need to check," he continued in a softer tone.

"Have you lost your mind, Prongs!" Sirius shouted indignantly, "Did you not here the words _dangerous creature on the loose_. We already hang out with one potentially dangerous magical creature, I don't think it's necessary to go out and make new friends."

"Oh get off it Sirius, Remus is only dangerous when you mention his enormous crush on Marissa Abbott."

"It's true, he actually snarled at me once when I brought it up in potions. I said her scent would probably be the only thing he'd smell if we brewed amortentia," Peter chimed in.

"That's beside the point!" Sirius exclaimed as he pulled at his hair in frustration, "Listen, I'm all for mad adventures, living the Marauder life and all that, but I draw the line at going to check on a creature dangerous enough to send all the students back to the castle."

"I agree with Padfoot."

"Thank you, Wormy," Sirius said gratefully.

"I think it's Harry," James stated as he ran his hand through the back of his hair.

"What!?" the other two shouted together.

"But you told us that they said there was a creature on the loose, Hagrid-"

"- _dangerous creature on the loose_! You've gone barmy Prongs, people always said it would be me, but it happened to you first. How am I going to tell Aunt Dor-"

"-why would he lie? Hagrid's never lied to us before. I mean there was the one time he said he owned an acromantula as a pet-"

"-I mean Evans has been saying it for years, but everyone always just thought it was a defense mechanism for how badly she wanted to take you into a broom closet and shag you silly-"

"-he was drunk that night, and drunk people tell lies all the time. I don't really hold it against him-"

"-it can't end this way. I'm too young and pretty to die. I don't want to die Prongsie, there' so much left for me-"

"Stop it! Shut up!" James shouted, cutting off the ramblings of his friends. "Just think about it for a second. Harry's been gone for almost a week and the professors have been looking for him non-stop, and then suddenly there is some big emergency that has everyone sent to the castle while the professors run out to go deal with it… it's too much of a coincidence."

"But what about Hagrid, didn't he say something about snakes? Didn't you say he looked really angry?" Peter questioned.

"All part of the plan the teachers came up with to get us to believe there really is a creature on the loose. And the scary look on Hagrid's face could be because of Harry, he's been searching the forest every night for the past 4 days, maybe he found something," James reasoned as a familiar sense of panic started to rise within him at the idea of something happening to Harry.

"Prongs you sound like conspiracy theorist, you're drawing conclusions from nothing. I mean even Xeno Lovegood would be proud of the story you just concocted, and he told me something about gum disease, heliopaths, and the former Minister of Magic the other day," Sirius chuckled at the memory.

"This isn't some big joke Sirius; I'm being completely serious about this!" James snapped.

Seeing the anger in his best mate's eyes, Sirius held back the urge to mention the unintentional name pun, "James, I realize that Harry's disappearance has bothered you… a lot. But this theory you've come up with is crazy, you can't just assume that everything abnormal that happens is connected to Harry. A lot of crazy shit happens at Hogwarts, not all of it is centered around him."

"I just have this feeling that he has something to do with this. Look," James sighed as he took off his glasses and wiped them clean with the sleeve of his robe before putting them back on, "I'm going in there whether you like it or not. You can do whatever you want, but it won't stop me."

"I'm with you James, it'll be safer if you have someone else going with you," Peter stepped up beside his friend as they made their way towards the clearing Hagrid had disappeared into.

"This is madness," Sirius mumbled as he kicked the dirt in frustration, before following his two friends into the Forbidden Forest.

* * *

"… _wake up… I have brought help…wake up Companion, Companion!"_

Harry heard a voice, a familiar voice, break through the blur that his life had become. He felt weak, tired, hungry, and he had lost feeling in his legs a long time ago. He had given up on being found long ago, but hearing a voice again for the first time in what felt like an eternity shocked him. Was this real or imagined? Had he gone insane?

" _Companion, I sssee that you are awake. I have no time for your sssillinesss, I have brought help."_

That voice was so familiar to Harry, but he just couldn't place it. Harry blinked his eyes rapidly, hoping to clear his vision enough to figure out who had come to rescue him.

" _S-sa-a-aphira…?"_ Harry called in confusion, " _w-what are you doing here? You disappeared, a-a-and I couldn't f-f-find you,"_ a rush of joy surged through his body at the realization that his serpent friend had come back to him.

" _Yesss companion, I dissappeared to find help for you and my Queen. I brought my brothers and sisters to help free you."_

Harry was confused as to what Saphira meant, "Brothers and sisters… _oh,_ " as Harry's eyes continued to re-focus and gained more clarity, he was met with an _interesting_ sight. Some would say it was a nightmare come to life, but Harry found it slightly humorous. Completely surrounding Harry and the Basilisk were thousands of different snakes all looking at him and their Queen with keen interest.

" _Well, uh- hi I guess,"_ Harry awkwardly greeted what probably was every single snake that inhabited the Forbidden Forest. 'No wonder I've probably been trapped here for days, it must have taken her forever to get all those snakes together,' he thought to himself.

Immediately after speaking, he was assaulted with hundreds of different hisses acknowledging him as a _speaker_ and different phrases of what, he guessed, snakes considered to be compliments. It was surreal, almost as if he was the leader of some massive snake cult.

" _Alright, alright, thank you friends,"_ Harry called out, silencing the snakes as they listened to him with rapt attention. Harry wondered why the snakes were acting so submissive and differently than Saphira. Maybe she was more similar to Hedwig than he initially had thought. He guessed that finding female animal companions with a lot of attitude was just another one of those things that only happened to him. " _Saphira, do you think you could get your brothers and sisters to lift your Queen enough so I can crawl out?"_

" _Of courssse,"_ she replied, and immediately all of the snakes slithered over to the body of the Queen and pushed in an attempt to role her over. Harry couldn't fathom how heavy the Basilisk must be, since the combined force of hundreds of snakes was barely enough to lift it. Using almost all of his remaining strength Harry grunted as he pushed up in an attempt to help the snakes lift their Queen, while simultaneously using his arms to pull himself free. "Aaarrgghh…" Harry growled in pain as he finally managed to remove his legs from underneath the Basilisk, which the other snakes immediately dropped with a _thud_ to the floor.

" _Th-thanks…"_ Harry wheezed as he lay on the cold stone of the chamber's floor, enjoying the feeling of freedom. After laying in silence, trying his best to ignore the pain that returned to his legs, a question popped into Harry's mind, " _Saphira, how did all of you get in here?"_ He was very curious as to how hundreds of snakes, of various sizes, managed to find their way into the Chamber of Secrets. They couldn't have gone through the school, since Harry was certain he would have heard the high pitched screams from all the way down here. " _The pipes?"_ he asked thinking it was the only possible answer.

" _No companion, I found another way. When my Queen collapsssed following the bonding ritual, her tail knocked over a wall, and behind that wall wasss a passage that led to the foressst. I found one of my brothersss and sspoke of what happened to you and my Queen. My brothers and sisters did not know that our Queen lived in the cassstle, and he immediately went in ssearch for the ressst of ussss,"_ she explained.

Harry perked up at hearing this, " _you mean there is another way out of here? Are their stairs?"_ he asked, and Saphira nodded her small head, " _Thank Merlin! I don't think I could crawl up that pipe,"_ he exclaimed as another pang of pain shot up his legs. Ignoring it, Harry pushed off the ground and attempted to stand. He succeeded… but only for a second. "Agghhh!" he cried as he toppled to the floor.

At seeing a _speaker_ fall to the floor in pain, the other snakes quickly slithered over to him.

Harry looked up off of the floor to see a sea of eyes looking at him, like a human does a hurt puppy. " _I'm fine… I swear_ ," he hissed in pain as he slowly forced himself back onto his feet. Something was definitely wrong with his back, and the bone sticking out of his right calf probably indicated that his fibula was broken. But then again, what else did he suspect after having a 70-foot Basilisk fall on him. There was also a massive gash on his left thigh where the scales of the Basilisk must have cut him. Altogether, it wasn't the worst collection of injuries he had ever had. Training with Oliver Wood for 3 years tended to do that to a person.

" _Go sssspeaker, you are hurt. You mussst leave and heal yourself. Me and my brothers and sisters will ssstay with our Queen and watch over her until ssshe wakesss,"_ one of the larger snakes came forward and spoke.

" _Yesss let'ss go Companion, you are losing too much blood, we must be quick,"_ Saphira urged as she crawled up his sleeve. The removal of the Basilisk body must have taken the pressure off of his wound, which Harry noted, was now bleeding heavily.

" _Thank you,"_ Harry hissed gratefully to the snakes who had come to his rescue, and they all bowed in synchronization in response. _Creepy_ , was the only word that rang through his mind at seeing that.

With the help of Saphira's hissed direction, Harry managed to hobble his way over to the secret exit that was discovered on accident. Harry took out his wand and cast _wingardium leviosa_ to help clear the rubble that partially blocked the entrance. But nothing happened. Not only was Harry physically exhausted, but he was magically as well. His accident must have been more taxing on his body than he had initially believed. Harry cursed in frustration, as this meant that he would now have to climb over the fallen stonework. It took a long time and was rather painful, but he eventually managed to make it into the passageway. Now all that awaited him was the long climb up.

* * *

"James, I don't like this," Peter said uncertainly, "it's too quiet and I don't know what direction we came from," he finished while looking around the forest.

The group had completely lost their sense of direction after only 5 minutes of walking, and had been wandering aimlessly ever since. The magic of the forest was ancient, it messed with the head of everyone that did not know exactly where they were going. If you had no path, no destination, then the forest took hold of your uncertainty and played with it. It incited fear and confusion, while also emitting an intimidating presence that would cower even the bravest of Gryffindor's. The thick, knotted trees that intertwined with one another created a canopy of darkness that prevented no external light from entering. Everything looked the same, but at the same time it all looked so _very_ different. It was disconcerting. Wind could not penetrate the Forest and birds steered clear of it as well, allowing silence to reign supreme. It was an eerie silence, broken only by one's own breath and footsteps, or any creature that you were unfortunate enough to come across.

"Shhh, Peter. We'll be fine, just another five minutes and I promise we'll head back to the castle," James dismissed as his eyes continued to scan the treeline and his ear's listened for the slightest bit of sound.

"I told you Wormy, he's gone barmy. You should've listened to me back there and not gone in," Sirius whispered in Peter's ear. James quickly turned his head and scowled at Sirius for talking again, Sirius just stuck his tongue out in return.

"But you came in with us," Peter whispered back in reply.

"Yeah, because I couldn't let you two idiots come in here and die. What was I supposed to do? Go to Remus and tell him I let you two wander the _Forbidden Forest_ on your own while some dangerous creature was on the loose. You know how he gets, I wasn't prepared to sit through _that_ lecture by myself, I'd much rather have to suffer through it with you two when we finally get back."

"Listen," James whispered harshly cutting off their conversation, "do you here that?"

Silence.

"Here what? I don't he-"

"That! Did you hear it that time?" James managed to shout excitedly while also being quiet.

"I heard it that time."

"Heard what? You two have gone insane! Let it be known to the world that Sirius Black was not the first _or_ the second Marauder to lose his gobstones."

"Shut up Sirius, there defi-"

"I heard it again Prongs, it sounds almost like hissing?"

"Right Peter, isn't that weird. I think it's coming from over there," he pointed to a small clearing of trees.

"Hissing you say? _Hissing_!? Oh god, it's a Basilisk! You led us to a fucking Basilisk, Prongs," Sirius cried out hysterically.

"Oh shut it you bloody drama queen," James smacked him over the head, "you're calling me insane and the first thing you associate with hissing is a Basilisk, and not some random snake. Let's head over there you prat… a Basilisk, as if a Basilisk would be anywhere near here," he muttered under his breath.

As the three approached the clearing, they came across a hunched figure stumbling through the trees.

"Look at that!" Peter shouted, as he was the first to spot it.

"Shit!" James cursed as he spotted the figure as well. After taking a second look, hope surged through him like a raging storm, "It's, it's…it's Harry!" James' heart was pounding, it was a wonder that it didn't burst, "Harry I've found you! Good Godric I've been so worried! We've all been so worried!" he cried out as he rushed to his stumbling friend.

"Easy James!" Sirius called after him, "He's hurt!"

 _Hurt?_ Harry was hurt? The word was like a dagger through his heart as he took a good look at his lost friend. "What happened Harry, what happened?" he questioned. James heard something leave Harry's mouth but couldn't understand it, "Harry, what was that, I didn't catch it? What happened to you?" he asked again, as Peter and Sirius finally caught up.

The same unintelligible sound left Harry's mouth again.

"Why is Harry hissing?" Sirius wondered out loud.

"Those are the same hissing sounds we heard earlier, James!" Peter exclaimed excitedly.

"Sure, whatever. But why in Merlin's glorious beard, is Harry hissing like a bloody serpent?"

"I don't know Padfoot, maybe something happened to him. Maybe he's delirious, he's probably trying to say something but it's just coming out as a hiss."

"That's 3 Marauders who have gone insane before me now," Sirius joked. "Right, sorry, bad time. It's just my natural reaction to everything… I think I might be in shock."

"Merlin's tits he's bleeding like crazy!" Peter squeaked as he looked like he was about to faint.

Upon hearing this, James instantly started checking over Harry's body. Harry was currently leaning up against a tree for support, so James had to walk around him to get a good look. As James examined his friend, he made a mental checklist of what he saw. Harry looked absolutely exhausted, he was pale and frail, his back looked like it was hurt somehow, the bone sticking out of his leg showed his leg was broken, and there was a massive gash on his left leg. "Holy shit… that's a lot of blood" James was shocked at how Harry was standing after losing so much blood, so quickly. "Sirius, toss me the cloak, we need to tourniquet is leg!" James shouted in panic. James barely spared a look as he caught the cloak and wrapped it around Harry's leg as tight as possible.

What James wasn't expecting, was for Harry to start shaking uncontrollably before falling unconscious.

* * *

Harry knew that his friends couldn't understand a word he was saying, but for some reason he could only speak in Parseltongue at that moment. No matter how hard he tried, it only came out as hisses. 'Probably the blood loss,' he thought darkly to himself.

Harry was relieved when he heard James shout for the invisibility cloak to use as a tourniquet. Maybe he wouldn't die, if they managed to slow the blood loss they could get him to the Hospital Wing before it was too late. The invisibility cloak was a good choice as well, because it didn't stain. It was one of the nicer features of the cloak, the fact that any sort of liquid just ran right over the surface and that it never needed to be washed.

Harry tried his best to give a reassuring smile to James as he was preparing the make-shift tourniquet, but all it turned out to be was a small wiggle of his upper lip. Harry looked down as James wrapped the cloak around his leg, covering his hands in Harry's blood. The tightness of the cloak gave Harry a slight bit of reassurance, as less blood escaped his wound almost instantly. What surprised Harry was that his blood wasn't running off of the cloak as expected, but it was being _absorbed_.

The next thing Harry knew was that he started to spasm violently, and he wasn't sure why. It wasn't painful either, it just felt as if something was slowly filling his body. Before he could process anything else, a bright light flashed and blinded him.

Harry woke up to find himself lying in the grass at the edge of a raging river. This definitely wasn't the Forbidden Forest. "Where am I?" he asked himself as he stood up. Slowly it dawned on Harry that he stood up without any pain in his back or from his legs. Looking down, he took a tentative step forward and gave both of them a good shake, realizing that they were both perfectly healed. "Where the hell am I?" he wondered again.

"I told you I'd see you again," giggled a very familiar voice.

Harry spun around and was met with the arousing sight of Death in a violet cocktail party dress looking as deadly as ever. "Don't tell me I died because of just a little blood loss?" Harry asked almost disappointed in himself.

"Of course not silly, you're way too tough for that," she replied sending him a wink. "I'm just here to congratulate you on finding the first Hallow."

Harry raised a questioning eyebrow at the entity, "I didn't really need to find it, I always knew where it was."

"Ugh, fine. Congratulations of _claiming_ the first Hallow not _finding it_ ," she pouted cutely.

"So should I expect a meeting with you every time I find one?"

"It depends, I guess. I just wanted to see you, Harry, I really _really_ missed you. Do you want me to come visit you?" she asked as she seductively made her way over to Harry.

"I didn't know you were into humans?" Harry said stiffly.

"I'm into Peverell's… there's a difference," she whispered into his ear.

"I'm spoken for," he answered as he started to sweat nervously.

"I saw, she's a pretty one for sure," she purred, "definitely not my type. I only have one type."

"I think I might, uh pass just this one time," Harry lied.

"That's a disappointment," Death sighed, "but at least I have something to look forward to next time," she giggled as she twirled her inky black hair around her finger.

"Did you only drag me here to try to seduce me, or did you have another more pressing reason?" Harry asked, trying his best to get her back on track.

"All business today, Harry? You were more fun last time if I remember correctly... which I do," she teased before looking at him seriously with her silver eyes, "you haven't found any of the Horcruxes," she stated flatly.

"I've been stuck at school for the past few months, it's not like I've been given the opportunity to go and find one. They could be anywhere!" he complained.

A funny look crossed Death's face before she broke down into a fit of giggle's. "What?" Harry asked feeling annoyed.

"Oh it's just something you said, don't worry about it right now. I'm sure you'll find it funny when you finally get it… or maybe you won't, but either way I find it hilarious."

"Great…" muttered Harry under his breath, "was there anything else you wanted to tell me?" Harry didn't care if his body was broken and half dead, he wasn't in the mood to deal with Death today and just wanted to return.

"Ahhhh," Death tapped her chin as she made a show of thinking, "just one more thing. When your blood touched the cloak, it claimed it, so it now responds to you. So I recommend reading one of those books you found in the Peverell vault."

Harry opened his mouth to ask a question, but it was quickly covered by another as Death captures his lips in a short, but very heated kiss. Harry was stunned. "Ooooo, even better than how I imagined," she cooed as she licked her lips, "now I can barely wait for next time. You better remember your promise," she warned, before turning and skipping away.

"I never made that pro-" before Harry could finish what he was saying, the same blinding light filled his vision, taking him away.

* * *

"…sorry alright… look at what our thoughtless idiocy did… personally I think you should be thanking us…"

"You will be getting no thanks from me Sirius Black…foolish children… going to be the death of me one day…"

"… understand your frustration Minerva… they did find the boy, something I couldn't manage… tell me again James…"

"… don't know what could have done it to him… I t-t-th-thought h-h-he was going t-to die…"

"…-ind anything Hagrid… no traces… perhaps we were mistaken…"

"…gotta be kidding me, Detention!... basically doing your jobs…oops, didn't mean that…"

"…-tion will be the least of your worries…"

"…will he be okay?..."

"…my wing, my rules…don't care…Out! Everyone out!..."

Harry heard voices as he flitted in and out of consciousness, but time and context eluded him in this lucid state.

"…has yet to return…is this normal…"

"…separated spine…shattered kneecap…fractures and breaks…major blood loss…"

"…miracle…allow James to remain…only tell Miss Vance when he wakes…"

Harry stayed in this state of limbo for quite a while. His senses were functioning, as he could hear, feel, and smell, but something was _off_. They worked, but they didn't perceive. A potion maybe? It wouldn't surprise him if Pomfrey had something to keep him in a state like this.

"...I'm happy they found him too. Beyond happy, but you can't just stay here alone waiting for him."

Harry's senses were finally coming back.

"And why is that?"

"Because I won't let you," came the determined voice of Lily Evans.

"You know Lily, you used to avoid me like dragon pox and now I'm going to start having to beat you away with a stick," he joked causing Lily to snort. "Did you just snort?"

"I did not," she immediately denied the accusation.

"You totally did."

"Did not."

"Oh my Merlin! Lily Evans just snorted," James laughed rambunctiously, "this is the greatest day of my life, I made Lily Evans snort."

"Shut up," she hissed, "I totally did not snort."

"You can deny it all day, Lily darling, but I will forever remember this moment. The time you snorted like a little piggy."

"I think I'll just start leaving you alone again," she threatened.

"You wouldn't," he challenged.

"And why wouldn't I?"

"Because I made you snort, and there's nothing more telling than when a guy can make a pretty girl snort."

"Prat," Harry heard a smack accompany the insult.

"Prig," came the laughing reply.

"Moron."

"Twit."

"Show-off."

"Prude."

"I am not a prude."

"You definitely are. If I looked up prude in the wizarding dictionary, a moving picture of your face, right now, would be underneath."

Lily snorted again.

"Ha! I made you snort again," he shouted triumphantly.

"What the hell! What did you just cast on me?"

"A transfiguration reversal spell."

"Why?"

"I just had to make sure you were actually Lily Evans, and not a pig transfigured to look like Lily Evans."

That response was followed by an indignant screech, a string of curse words, obnoxious laughter, running feet, overturned furniture, and finally the slamming of the Hospital Wing doors.

Harry couldn't help but smile at what had just come to pass.

"Ah, so you were awake for that performance?"

Harry pushed himself up further on the bed as he looked across the room to see Remus Lupin lying down, partially hidden by curtains.

"Hey, Remus," Harry greeted, "Don't we look pathetic, strapped to these hospital beds."

Remus gave a weak laugh, "Yeah well, I'm guessing your story is a lot cooler than mine."

"You feeling alright?"

"Yeah, it's just that time of the month," Remus explained. Seeing the realization dawn on Harry's face he continued, "In the chaos that followed the dangerous creature that apparently got loose, and your reappearance, people have been a little bit too preoccupied to be worrying about me."

"Nobody's seen you?" Harry asked worriedly. The last thing that Harry wanted to happen was his reappearance to accidently expose Remus' condition.

Remus waved his hand in dismissal, "Don't worry about it, nobody's seen. Like I said, everyone has been worrying about other things today. Even if they did, I doubt they'd pay too much attention to it. You want to talk about what happened to you?"

"I, uh, don't really remember what happened…it was all kind of a blur," Harry lied. As much as he trusted Remus and the Marauders, Harry still didn't know what he could tell them. He also hadn't come up with a good enough story about what was the cause of his disappearance. He'd need to get onto that soon, he assumed the Headmaster would have some questions when he eventually stopped by.

"That's alright, Harry. Apparently it's a common reaction to traumatic events in people's lives," he said kindly. "The night I, uh… got my problem, is still just a blur in my memory," he said quietly, sounding ashamed at what he had become.

Picking up on this, Harry did his best to reassure his friend, " _What_ you are doesn't matter to me Remus, it doesn't matter to anybody who has half a brain cell. What matters is _who_ you are, and you should be proud of who you are Remus."

Remus gave a trembling smile to Harry, as his brown eyes started to water, "Thanks, Harry. I know you've never thought about me that way, but hearing you words still means a lot," he choked out. "Pomfrey came by earlier and told me to catch some sleep for tonight, so I better do that before she comes back to find me awake," he explained as he took a bottled labelled sleeping potion and downed it in one gulp, "It was good to see that you're alright, Harry," Remus muttered as he closed his eyes and entered a dreamless sleep.

Turning away from Remus, Harry took a look around the empty Hospital Wing before looking down at himself. He noticed that he was still wearing the same shirt he wore when he disappeared. Lifting the sleeve, Harry found the sleeping form of Saphira curled around his upper arm. Harry gave her a whispered _thank you_ , before he started gently stroking her sleeping form.

Seeing his companion sleeping so peacefully, reminded Harry of the exhausting past few days he had experienced. Despite the time he had spent unconscious, Harry was still exhausted, so he decided it would be good to get some extra sleep. As he was shuffling around the hospital bed, trying to find a comfortable position, he heard the door to the Hospital Wing creak open.

"Harry!" he heard an ecstatic scream. When he turned to look, he was met with the sight of his girlfriend Emmeline Vance. This was the most dishevelled he had ever seen her. Her shining blonde hair stuck up in odd places similar to what his hair usually did, she had bags under her eyes indicating a lack of sleep, and her usually pristine uniform was incredibly wrinkled. Harry couldn't imagine how hard his disappearance hit her. Judging by appearances, he could only guess that it was very hard on her. But despite this, she was still beautiful.

"You know, Emmy, I was just about to go to sleep," he intoned, causing her to hesitate slightly on her way over to his bed. "But screw it, this is better," he laughed as he gave her a crooked smile.

Harry only had a split second before Emmeline hopped onto his bed, swallowed him up in her arms and peppered his face with kisses. She was both sweet and salty. He lost himself in the taste of her sweet kisses landing on his lips, mixed with the salt of her tears. It was pure bliss. In one of the short breaks they took to resupply their lungs with oxygen, Harry took her face in his hands and looked her in the eye, "Oh yes, this is definitely better," he whispered before recapturing her lips in his and showing her just how much he missed her.

 **AN**

 **I believe this is the longest chapter yet! Next chapter will be the Christmas Holidays, so it will be another long one because there is A LOT of stuff that needs to be covered. I think you guys will like it, there are a lot of continuing plot lines and new plot points that will emerge from the events.**

 **I know I said that I wouldn't start one of my new stories for a while, but I just couldn't help myself and I posted the first chapter of one a couple of days ago. I'd appreciate it if you took a look at it, it's called A Beautiful Lie. If you have enjoyed this story thus far, then I'm sure you'll love that one just as much or maybe even more.**

 **The next update for this should be up in about a week, maybe two weeks time. It's just a rough estimate, so it could be shorter or longer depending on what happens in my life.**

 **Remember, reviews are lovely and I do enjoy reading them! All of them!**

 **I'll see you guys next time!**


	17. Chapter 17

Lying was something that had never come naturally to Harry. Despite all the times he resorted to lying, whether during the adventures of his past life or the times in this new one, he never managed to get the hang of it. In fact, if he was being brutally honest, he would say that he was terrible at it. He figured that it came as a result of his years spent in Gryffindor. Maybe if he was sorted into Slytherin, like the Sorting Hat wanted, he would have been better at it.

Alas, he was not, and that was why nobody seemed to believe the story he concocted in the Hospital Wing. Elements of his story added up and there was some truth to it, but it was blatantly obvious to his friends and Dumbledore that something was missing. It was during moments like this that he wished he had people like Crabbe and Goyle as friends, and not some of the smartest people in the castle.

Harry explained how he woke up from a strange dream and was feeling restless, so he decided to take a walk around the castle. He said how he found a secret passage near the Headmaster's office and followed it down before taking a few others. It was the truth, and it managed to answer Dumbledore's question about how none of the portraits or ghosts picked up any sight of him. However, it was from that point that Harry's story entered the land of fiction and half-truths. Harry said that as he went down one of the passages everything suddenly went completely black, with him eventually waking up inside a massive underground cavern trapped underneath a mound of rubble. His story concluded with him freeing himself and finding an exit that led him to the Forbidden Forest where he ran into his friends. He lied, saying he couldn't remember much about his disappearance and that his memories of the past few days were blurs in his mind.

It was obvious Dumbledore didn't buy his story at all when he first heard it in the Hospital Wing after Harry's return, but there wasn't much the old wizard could do, especially when Harry was surrounded with friends that wouldn't dare leave his side. Dumbledore seemed particularly interested in the cavern he found himself in and a mass of snakes that Hagrid spotted in the Forest, but Harry deflected the questions as best as he could. Apparently being on the verge of passing out from blood loss is a pretty good excuse.

Harry spent two weeks in the infirmary recovering from his magical exhaustion and physical trauma. Frank, Alice, and Marlene stopped by occasionally to fill him in on the various gossip and news around the castle. Lily, James, and the rest of the Marauders stopped by as well doing their best to entertain him during the long hours he spent in bed, much to Lily and Pomfrey's chagrin. Even Xeno came to visit, giving Harry an update on their search for the Hallows and telling Harry his own outlandish theory as to the cause of Harry's disappearance. Harry wanted to tell him about the Invisibility Cloak, but it didn't seem like the right time or place. It was Emmy who stopped by most often, doing her best to make Harry feel better than any combination of healing potions Poppy gave him.

By the time he was released from the Hospital Wing, most of the rumours on his disappearance had already passed and people were more focused on the upcoming Gryffindor versus Slytherin grudge match at the end of the month. Finding himself at the center of the Hogwarts rumour mill was something Harry would never miss, and something he certainly would do his best to avoid. He'd already had his fill of whispers behind his back and shameless staring, it was nice not being the main topic of conversation and he wanted to keep it that way.

The remainder of the term seemed to fly by, having already taken his OWLs, Harry's time off was not too detrimental and he quickly managed to catch up on his missing assignments. A lot of his free time was spent in the Room of Requirement researching new spells and continuing to experiment with his magic.

His return from the Hospital Wing led to one of the more interesting developments in his life and something he had been waiting for since the end of his 3rd year. After hearing from Sirius that the Marauders had all become illegal animagi to help ease Remus' furry little problem, Harry swore to himself that he would master the animal transformation. In his first night back in Gryffindor Tower, the boys waited for Remus and Frank to both be out of the dorm before removing the Mandrake leaves from the top of their mouths. Despite the discomfort, James, Peter and Sirius had all waited for Harry to return before removing the leaf, claiming that it was a Marauder project that they would be doing together every step of the way. Harry was touched by how loyal the Marauders were and he wondered, not for the first time, what happened that caused them to become so distrustful and betray one another at the end of the war.

The process was slow going and they had only made a limited amount of progress in the few practices they managed to sneak in when Remus was out at Charms Club. The boys chose not to tell Remus about their practices for two main reasons. The first was they wanted to surprise him when they finally mastered the transformation. The second reason was that Remus would freak out over how illegal and irresponsible it was of them doing this completely unsupervised. Remus was a bit of a mother hen; it was a wonder he wasn't named prefect that year.

It was after one of their animagus sessions when James invited Harry to stay over with Sirius at his family manor for the holidays. He had been meaning to ask him for weeks but the situation never seemed right. It was only after hearing Dumbledore enquiring into Harry's plans over the holidays that he finally sucked up the courage and asked. For some inexplicable reason James was incredibly nervous before asking, but he simply put it down to never inviting a close friend to stay over the holidays before. To James' relief, Harry accepted.

That is how Harry ended up on the Hogwarts Express riding back to Kings Cross Station with a smile that just wouldn't leave his face.

"Come on Wormy, you already have a copy of him, I'll trade you my Agrippa for Barnabus the Barmy."

"I already told you Sirius, I have a thousand copies of Agrippa, and Barnabus is super rare. I'm going to hang onto him for a better trade."

"What about if I gave you Dumbledore and Agrippa. Two for one, I think that's a pretty good deal," Sirius tried again.

"Now you're just being a prat Padfoot, I could find like 10 copies of Dumbledore on the floor if I went up and down the train," Peter replied causing Sirius to pout.

"How about Dumbledore, Agrippa, and my History of Magic notes," Sirius offered, waggling his eyebrows. A greedy smile crept onto his face at seeing the internal conflict Peter was going through over the tempting offer.

Unfortunately for Sirius, Remus swooped in and saved the day, "Keep the card Peter, I'll give you my notes. We all know Sirius just copies them, so you'll actually be getting the original source."

"Merlin! Sometimes I wonder how you're a Marauder and not a prefect, Remus… always ruining my fun," Sirius grumbled as he crumpled up his two worthless chocolate frog cards.

"Don't worry Remus, you'll be a shoe in for the position next year," James called out from behind the Transfiguration text he was reading.

"I don't know James, Frank is doing a pretty good job and I don't see any reason for McGonagall to change the position next year," Remus frowned.

"She will definitely see reason. We'll just start to make more and more mischief until she's forced to make you prefect in a desperate attempt to control us," James responded, causing Sirius to whoop in agreement.

"Do detentions mean nothing to you two?" Harry asked, already knowing the answer.

"They never did, especially when we used to be assigned detention together" James laughed. "The professors only caught on in our 3rd year, and started assigning us detention in different parts of the castle."

"Not like that stops us though," Sirius barked out a laugh.

"And why is that?" came the sweet voice of Lily Evans, standing in the middle of the open compartment door with a raised eyebrow and a curious glint in her emerald eyes.

James blushed under her attention, but quickly sent Sirius a warning look.

"Ah, nothing to worry your fiery little head about Lily-flower," Sirius deflected, "don't you look particularly ravishing today. If you looked any better, James might just choke on his saliva and die," he joked, causing a slight blush to cross her cheeks.

"It's nice to see you Lily, what made you come visit our compartment?" Remus asked, doing his best to save both James and Lily from further embarrassment.

"Uh…yes," Lily stumbled as she tried to control the coloring of her cheeks, "I um, actually came over to wish you all a Happy Holidays. We'll be approaching the station soon and I didn't know if I would get the chance, given the crowded nature of the platform."

"Happy Holidays to you too, Lily!" Harry returned, "I'm sure you'll have a good time, your family must miss you terribly." Harry couldn't imagine how difficult it must be for his maternal grandparents to be separated from their daughter for ten months out of the year. To have a daughter living in a separate world that they couldn't relate to in any way would certainly take its toll on them.

"My parents can't wait! Christmas always used to be our favorite time of year, and it's only become more so with me coming back from Hogwarts." Lily explained excitedly. The amount of love and admiration Lily held for her parents was clearly evident on her face. "Petunia… my sister… well, I'm sure she missed me in her own way," she added as an afterthought. Her face maintained a certain amount of love, but a small crease in her forehead betrayed the frown that she was fighting to keep back.

Harry couldn't blame her; he couldn't help but scowl at the thought of Petunia Evans as well.

"So what are you doing over the holidays Harry?" Lily asked, quickly changing the direction of the conversation away from her family, "Are you going to be spending quality time with Emmeline?" she continued with an teasing smirk.

"Unfortunately, no," Harry responded with genuine disappointment, remembering the conversation he had with his girlfriend a few nights before the holidays began, "she's going to America to visit family. She has an uncle out in California who's some hot shot healer."

"Where are you staying over the holidays then? Surely you're not alone, nobody should be alone over the holidays!" Lily exclaimed, sounding slightly panicked at the thought of Harry being all by himself.

"Have no fear, Lily dear, Harry will be in the company of the two most entertaining, charming, and handsome men in all of Hogwarts," Sirius announced dramatically.

"Oh, well I hope you have a lot of fun with Remus and Peter then, Harry," Lily smirked back, causing Peter to blush and Remus to laugh at the look of outrage on Sirius' face.

"I think you're spending too much time with us Lily, you're almost starting to fit in," Remus joked.

A look of false horror crossed her pretty face, "Oh no, we can't have that! I better leave before you come up with one of your silly nicknames for me… one that isn't Lily-flower," she added, cutting Sirius off from what she knew he was going to say. "Anyways, it was nice seeing you all, I need to head back to my cabin to gather my things," she waved as she made her way out of the compartment.

"Lily!" James abruptly shouted, "Lily…" he called out again in a quieter voice.

"Yes… Potter?" she drew out as she slowly turned back towards the group of boys.

"I…uh, I was w-wondering if you were free uh, over the holidays," he stammered out, while his right hand instinctively went to go ruffle the back of his head, "It's just that um, all of us… the Gryffindor's were going to head out to Diagon Alley sometime over the break, and I, uh _we_ were wondering if you wanted to join us?"

Lily's eyes focussed on James as if her were an organism under inspection of a microscope. After a few tense moments, her gaze softened as she gave him a soft smile, "Sure, I'll go with you. All of you. I think it'll be good to spend time with friends outside of school for once."

"That's great!" James shouted, clearly thrilled that Lily accepted his proposition. "I'll send you my owl when we pick the date… just don't throw out the letter like all the other one's I've sent you over the years," James joked in a self-deprecating manner, as Lily flinched at his words.

"Yeah… absolutely… well, bye!" she called out as she finally departed, looking as if her mind were elsewhere.

The remainder of the train ride passed by relatively quickly, the boys alternated between playing Gobstones, Exploding Snap, and pranking each other with minor hexes and jinx's. Packing up their things and dragging their trunks off of the train, the boys made their way onto Platform 9 and ¾'s and searched for their families.

Peter was the first to leave, after spotting a small, rather mousy looking woman who he greeted as his mother. Remus followed shortly after, approaching a kind looking couple who seemed overjoyed at seeing their son. Remus' mother looked a tad bit frail, but that did not stop her from giving her son a bone crushing hug when he finally reached them. Remus' balding father stood bye and smiled kindly at the mother-son reunion, but his eyes would occasionally dart around suspiciously before returning to his family.

"Harry!" an excited yell came from a few feet away, Harry turned just in time to catch his over excited girlfriend. She gave him a short, passionate kiss before whispering in his ear, "My parents want to meet you before we leave."

Harry froze in fear; he had never met the parents of a girl he dated. What if they didn't like him? What if he embarrassed himself? Before the panic could truly settle in, Emmeline took his hand and dragged him towards a rather imposing looking couple.

The man and woman that stood before him were clearly purebloods. They both wore expensive silk robes, dragon skin footwear, and various pieces of expensive looking jewellery. It was clear that Emmeline had inherited her looks from both of them, her facial structure from her father, and her coloring from her mother. "Mother, father, this is Harry! I wanted to introduce you to him before we left for America."

Not wanting to appear weak in front of his girlfriend's parents, Harry looked up and met their eyes. Mrs. Vance gave a tight smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, while Mr. Vance seemed a little bit more at ease. "It's nice to meet you, sir, I'm Harry Peverell," he introduced himself to her father, giving him a firm shake.

"You're certainly a good looking boy," Mr. Vance spoke up unexpectedly, catching Harry off guard, "I can see why Emmeline took quite a liking to you. I remember her speaking about some boy she met at work over the summer, I'm happy to see it worked out for her."

"Your parents were squibs?" Mrs. Vance's cool voice cut in before Harry could respond to Mr. Vance.

Not quite liking the tone of her voice, Harry held back the urge to give a sharp response, "Yes they were, Mrs. Vance, it is a pleasure meeting you and I think you look quite lovely today," Harry complimented receiving only huff in response.

"Yes mother, but Harry is a Peverell, surely you realize the importance of that name," Emmeline spoke up trying to appease her mother.

"I am not a fool Emmeline; I notice an ancient name when I hear it," she retorted, causing Emmeline to flinch slightly, "I am rather interested in how a product of two squibs managed to become the Lord Peverell. There is no political power behind the family anymore, but it is still a powerful position."

"I could write to my account manager in Gringotts and I am sure he could look up my family genealogy. I could send you a copy when it is completed, if it pleases you ma'am," Harry offered.

"Yes, yes, I am sure my _wife_ would appreciate that. Perhaps a Christmas gift. It was good meeting you, Harry, my little Emmy speaks quite fondly of you. However, we really must be off to the Ministry to catch our portkey. Emmeline say your final farewells and meet us on the other side, dear," Mr. Vance spoke as he turned to exit the station with his wife.

"Sorry about my mother, she isn't the easiest woman to get along with. She's a Rosier by birth," Emmeline looked down at her feet almost as if she expected Harry to break up with her on the spot.

Cupping her face with his hand and lifting it so their eyes would meet Harry, Harry reassured her, "That doesn't matter to me, Emmy, you know that. Besides, I rather liked your father."

"Oh yeah, he's great!" she perked up, "It's his side of the family we are meeting up with in America, they're so much fun! Much better than my mother's side. We celebrated Yule with them a few years back, and my father hasn't taken us back since. He's not really a fan of mother's side of the family."

"That's unfortunate, but it's better to have some family than none," Harry kissed her lightly on the cheek. "I should let you go catch up with them, before you mother comes back and grills me some more on my lineage," Harry joked causing Emmeline to giggle lightly.

"Alright, bye Harry!" she kissed him one last time, "Don't get into too much trouble with those insane friends of yours," she called over her shoulder as she rushed through the portal.

Smiling at the brick wall where Emmeline had just disappeared too, Harry felt a pair of eyes watching him. Turning around, Harry caught the impassive gaze of Bellatrix Black. She was standing with her two sisters, beside a large group of people all wearing black. Harry chuckled at how fitting their attire was. The adults all looked distinctly pure-blooded, even more so than the Vance's, and the rest of the occupants of the platform all seemed to give them a wide birth.

A tall silver haired man stood at the center of the large collection of wizards and witches, Harry figured that he must be the Head of the Black Family. What interested Harry more, was the fact that he was currently speaking to Sirius. It seemed to be a rather intense conversation, and both males completely ignored the hate filled look one of the women was sending Sirius.

Harry then spotted James following an attractive couple that made their way over to the Black family. The woman that stood beside James went over and embraced the various members of the Black's, before giving a warm hug and kiss to the silver haired man.

The man who looked like an older version of James, cordially greeted the group, before entering deep conversation with the Head of House Black. It looked as if the two of them were laughing, just as they shook hands and led Sirius away. Harry gave a small wave to Bellatrix who was still looking at him with a blank stare, and after a few seconds she gave him a small nod.

Harry pushed through the dispersing crowds towards what could only be the Potter's, with a bubble of excitement growing in the pit of his stomach. It took almost all of Harry's self-control not to run and embrace the witch and wizard when he first approached them.

Charlus Potter struck an intimidating figure with his tight fitted robes, salt and pepper hair, and strong magical presence, yet he still gave off a feeling of love and protection. While Dorea Potter, in Harry's opinion, was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. She showed the aristocratic look that favored the Black's, but her grey eyes were kind, and her face showed a softness that one would rarely associate with dark pureblood family.

"Harry!" Sirius and James called out in unison as soon as they spotted him.

"Dear me, he really does look like Jamie," Dorea said with a gasp. Despite already knowing how similar Harry looked to her husband and son, seeing it in real life was a shock. "It's lovely to meet you, Harry," Dorea quickly recovered, "I'm Dorea Potter and this is Charlus Potter, we have certainly been looking forward to meeting you."

Doing his best to fight through the lump that formed in the back of his throat, Harry replied, "The pleasure is all mine, ma'am, thank you for inviting me to stay over the holidays."

"No thanks necessary lad," Charlus jumped into the conversation, "you're practically family, at least you look like you are. Based off of what Sirius and James have written to us, you'll fit right in."

"I noticed you guys were over with Sirius' family, what was going on?" Harry turned to James.

"Oh that's just tradition really. Whenever we're at the train station, we pop by to say hello to the Black's. It's mostly just because dad wants to talk to Arcturus about something, they're close friends," James responded.

Sirius just nodded along, but it looked as if he was holding something back.

"Alright, time to head back boys, Mopsy has probably cooked up dinner by now," Charlus called as he led them to the public floo station.

It was only a matter of seconds later that Harry was picking himself off an ornate rug and looking around at what appeared to be a sitting room. "Not the greatest with magical travel?" Charlus asked from the side of the fireplace, picking up and pouring himself a glass of amber liquid.

"Not really, sir, I usually end up sprawled out on the floor at best, or at the completely wrong destination at worst," Harry smiled ruefully.

"My father was just like that," Charlus laughed, "he refused to use the floo, hated apparating, and said the Knight Bus was the worst invention the Ministry ever made. His motto was that if he couldn't fly there on his broom, then it wasn't worth attending in the first place."

"I don't blame him, if I could fly everywhere I would do it in a heartbeat."

"So you're a Quidditch player too?" Charlus asked looking interested, as he led Harry through various hallways lined with portraits of his ancestors. Harry could get lost in this house for days, the amount of Potter family history just sitting around was practically a dream come true.

"I don't play for any of the school teams, but I enjoy playing. I think James as his sights on making me the new Seeker next year."

"James can definitely be a fanatic sometimes, but that's just the Potter blood running through him. I have half a mind actually letting him join the professional leagues when he's done school, just to see how many records he would break."

"Why wouldn't he be able to join the leagues? Do you want him to do something else?" Harry asked curiously.

"Oh no, nothing like that. James can do whatever he wants really, as long as it doesn't put him in Azkaban mind you. I just meant that the future can be uncertain," Charlus said more to himself than to Harry.

In that moment, Harry figured the Charlus Potter knew more about the coming war than most others at this point in history. Harry didn't remember reading about his grandfather in any of the books written about the First Blood War, so he was interested in what his grandfather planned on doing.

"Ah here we are," Charlus announced as they entered a nicely decorated dining room, that was clearly meant to be used for informal and family dinners. They had passed the main dining room on the way here, and it was at least 5 times the size of this room. James, Sirius, and Dorea were all sitting around the table patiently waiting to dig in.

Dinner was a rather subdued affair, with Charlus and Dorea asking about how the first term had went for the boys. James and Sirius went into detail on the various pranks they had pulled and how McGonagall was starting to get frustrated at her inability to actually catch them in the act. Dorea gently reminded them that Minerva was an old friend, and that she'd rather they didn't send her to an early grave. The Potter's were also rather impressed with the high grades the boys had all managed to pull off, especially Harry.

"That's very impressive Harry, especially for someone who was homeschooled for most of their life," Dorea said after hearing Harry's marks.

"Thank you," Harry blushed slightly under the praise, "despite my parents not being able to do any magic, they spent quite a bit of money on trying to find the best possible tutors wherever we were living at the time."

"They sound as if they were wonderful people," she smiled at the boy, "Do you feel as if you have adjusted to living in Britain and at Hogwarts fairly well?"

"He took to it like a Niffler to Gringotts! It was like he'd been living in Hogwarts his entire life. I tried to get him to fall into the trick step on his first day, and he just knew it was there!" Sirius gesticulated wildly.

The adults laughed at the excitable boy, "The trick step is an illusion Sirius, some people can recognize them and avoid falling for them."

"Whatever, I still think it's bloody weird sometimes," he muttered under his breath.

"How's Dumbledore been?" Charlus asked suddenly.

"About the same as always," James responded, knowing what his father was really asking, "he keeps a polite distance between himself and almost all students. He's always there for breakfast and most of the time at dinner. He'll make the odd announcement and we'll see him wondering the halls sometimes, but other than that he's just overseeing the castle."

Charlus seemed satisfied with that answer, "Just let me know if the old man approaches any of you. If he ever wants to speak, tell him to owl me first and then we can discuss whatever it is he wants. The same thing goes for you Sirius, either send me a letter or send one to your grandfather."

"Yeah no problem Uncle Charlus, but why? Sirius asked curiously.

"I wouldn't worry about it too much right now, but me and Arcturus both feel as if Dumbledore is going to start looking to recruit certain individuals."

"Why would he be looking to recruit us though?" James chimed in.

"Charlus…" Dorea gave her husband a serious look.

"I understand Dorea, but I feel as if they need to know this at least," Charlus explained to his wife, who didn't look entirely convinced, "We feel as if Dumbledore is planning on starting his own information network. For people like Albus Dumbledore, there is nothing more valuable than gathering information. Information, unlike other resources, is something that can be mined anywhere and from anyone."

"Like us?" Sirius added.

"You might be the most valuable assets that Dumbledore can find. Arcturus has used his vast resources to pay particularly close attention to Dumbledore recently. We have noticed that he has been leaving the castle increasingly frequently meeting with old students and acquaintances all across Britain. Aurors, artifact dealers, potion supplies distributors, Healers, Wizengamot members, Cursebreakers, Knockturn Alley dealers, scholars, pure-bloods, half-bloods, muggleborns, you name it."

"And you think we're next?" Harry inferred what Charlus was getting to.

"Exactly! We feel that it is just a matter of time before Dumbledore looks to try and recruit students of interest. You three will be at the top of his list. Harry, you are a wildcard in this situation. With your ancient name and lack of political history, you might be the first person Dumbledore will try to subtly influence."

"He already has," Harry admitted. At seeing the confused looks on Sirius and James, Harry elaborated, "Before, and even after you invited me over for the holidays, Dumbledore approached me a number of times inquiring as to what my plans were. It appeared as if he was simply being a concerned educator looking out for the student without a home to return to, but I feel it was more than that. He suggested that perhaps I should remain at school over the holidays, or he could look into seeing if the Abbott's or the Diggory's could take me in."

"Those are some of Dumbledore's strongest supportors, I don't think he's at the point that he will actively pursue you, but he was definitely testing out the waters," Charlus explained. "James, he will be looking to get to you because we are an influential pure-blood family with ties to both the more traditional and light leaning families. Sirius, he will be looking to try and gain information on Arcturus and the darker oriented families. I'm not saying that it will be happening the next time you see Dumbledore, but remember this for whenever you do speak to the man."

"Good, you explained the basics to them, now let us stop speaking politics," Dorea cut in. "What I am more interested in, is how James' attempts at wooing that poor Evans girl have come along," Dorea looked at her son with a predatory smirk, causing the other boys in the room to burst out laughing at James' reddening face.

* * *

Remus Lupin loved Hogwarts, it was the first place in the entire world where he felt like he belonged. It wasn't always that way, he remembered how stressful his first year at Hogwarts was, never wanting to get too close to anyone over the fear that they would figure out his secret. Of course he wanted friends, every child in the world wants friends, but he couldn't risk being outed as a werewolf.

Sharing a dorm with Sirius Black, James Potter, Peter Pettigrew, and Frank Longbottom, did not make hiding his secret any easier. The boys were all just so _friendly_ , and simply wouldn't leave him alone when he was too sick to go to class. It was only a matter of time before they knew his secret, and hated him for being a werewolf.

That night came during the second month of second year, but instead of hating him, they supported him. They thought it was _cool_. What sane person thought being a werewolf was cool? Then again, James and Sirius were not particularly right in the head.

It was that fateful night that Remus made his first ever friends and Hogwarts turned from being a place of paranoia, into a place he could enjoy every single moment of.

The one man he had to thank for all of that was Albus Dumbledore. The Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry had given him a future. Something that no matter how hard his parents worked, they could never provide him. The moment Dumbledore stepped into their little cottage it changed his life.

"We cooked supper before going to pick you up from the station, honey. Go to your room and freshen up, it will take about five minutes to heat it up," his mother Hope called from the kitchen.

"Yes mother," Remus answered as he slowly made his way through the house to his small bedroom. It was sparsely decorated with only a few wizarding photographs of him and his friends sitting on a shelf, and a Gryffindor scarf pinned up against the wall. The crowning jewel of his humble abode was a large painting of him and his family sitting by the river that ran near their original home.

It was painted by his mother shortly of the attack that changed their lives. Hope Lupin wanted to remind her family that nothing had changed, that they were still a family, and they all still loved each other. Fenrir Greyback couldn't take that away from them. It wasn't the best piece of art his mother had ever made, as she had increased in skill over the years, but it was perfect. Every time he felt himself slip into a dark place and the monster within him threatened to take over, Remus just thought of this painting and it reminded him that Remus Lupin was first and foremost a wizard, and was loved and cared for by many.

"Remus dear, dinner is ready!" his mother called.

Making his way back into the kitchen, he took a seat and piled his plate with a rather bloody steak, potato's and asparagus. It was a tasty dinner, made all the more special by spending it with his family.

"How was your school year been?" Remus' mother asked in between bites.

"It's been great!" Remus smiled, "My marks are just as good as last year, which I'm happy about because a lot of the upper years I asked last year said their marks slipped during OWL year. Charms Club is as interesting as always, I think word got out about how good it is, because there are a lot more people in it this year. Oh, and the Quidditch team is looking like it's going to win the cup again this year."

"Well with that friend of yours, James, I certainly think you will."

"Speaking of your friends Remus, are they behaving themselves?" his father asked from across the table. His father's question sounded innocent on the surface, but Remus knew what he was really asking.

"Yes, they are doing fine dad. And no, they haven't told anyone that I'm a werewolf. You've been asking the same question for years now, and they have yet to tell anyone and they never will," Remus felt a familiar flash of annoyance at his father's question. For whatever reason, his father didn't trust his friends and it grated on Remus' nerves whenever it was brought up.

"Oh hush, Lyall," his mother scolded his father, "Remus trusts his friends, that should be enough for you to trust them as well."

"Is it because they're pure-bloods dad? Is that why you don't trust them, you think they'll turn me over the first chance they'll get?!" his voice started raise.

"Of course not, Remus!" his father snapped, before calming back down, "I just care for you, my son. I love you and I only want the best for my little boy."

Remus knew he shouldn't' have gotten angry at his father. Lyall Lupin felt guilty enough over the fate of his son. He had completely shouldered the blame of what happened to his son all those years ago, and the guilt continued to eat away at him to this day. "Love you too dad," Remus answered back.

Remus quickly finished his meal and went off to bed, dreading the thought of the day he would no longer of his mother and father to support him.

* * *

"Peter!" the sound of his mother's weak voice reached his sensitive ears. Sighing, Peter put down his potions book and went to go see what his mother wanted.

"Yes?" he entered the sitting room to find his mother sitting on her favorite recliner.

"Peter, baby, can you pass me my glasses please, I can't read without them," she waved a feeble hand in order to get his attention.

Sighing to himself, Peter walked over to their coffee table and picked up his mother's glasses before passing them over to her.

"Peter, you're such a sweet, sweet boy," she thanked him before turning her attention to her book.

It had been happening for years now, the Healer's had no diagnosis for what her problem was, but his mother was dying slowly. At first it was her eye sight, then it was her voice, and lately it had become her magic. She refused to use magic unless it was an emergency, as the Healer's warned her that her body wasn't channeling enough magic for regular usage. In other words, she only had a certain amount of magic left in her body.

Peter blamed the man who had left his mother all those years ago, his _father_ , he thought spitefully. In Peter's mind he had no father, a man who dumps his seed in a woman and then leaves her, has no right to be called father.

If only his mother hadn't been so foolishly naïve. His mother had thought herself in love with this man, and still did, and when he left her after the birth of her son it broke her heart. She had never been the same, and Peter had cursed the unknown man since the day he understood what he did.

All Peter knew was that he was a pureblood, a proper wizard in some people's opinions, not that he believed in that rubbish. His mother was a pureblood, and she couldn't even use her magic anymore, so Peter didn't see what was so high and mighty about them.

But then again, James and Sirius were purebloods and they were some of the best wizards he had ever seen. It was all very confusing to Peter, he didn't particularly care for politics, but for some reason it kept on getting shoved in his face. All he wanted to do was enjoy his time at Hogwarts with his friends, graduate, and work as a potioneer. He didn't think that was too much to ask for.

"Peter are you there?" came the voice of their current house guest, shaking Peter from his thoughts.

"In the kitchen," he called back.

A few seconds later, a tall, dark and handsome man entered the room. He had dark brown hair and even darker eyes, and looked younger than he really was. Peter didn't know much about him other than he was family.

"Is there anything you are looking for Augustus?" Peter asked his second cousin who had decided to stop by for the holidays. He had recently returned to Britain for work and was apparently renting an apartment in Diagon Alley, but was looking for a more permanent residence. Peter didn't really know why he felt like he had to come to visit so often, but maybe he was just feeling lonely over the holidays.

"Not anything particular," he waved his hand dismissively. Augustus walked around the room confidently and peered into the sitting room where Peter's mom and just fallen asleep, "Sad isn't it?"

"What is?"

"Sad that a pure blooded witch like your mother has been reduced to such a state," he answered not looking at Peter, but continuing to look at his mother.

"It isn't the best situation," Peter answered, not feeling entirely comfortable talking about his mother with his cousin, "but I don't see what her being a pureblood has to do with it."

"Oh nothing, nothing, I was just making an observation," he tapped his fingers in a repetitive pattern against the wall, "I remember her when she was full of life. Your mother was always one of my favorite family members, we used to get along swimmingly," he kept the conversation going.

"Oh, I didn't realize that you two knew each other that well. She never really mentioned you all that much…" Peter trailed off.

"We hadn't seen each other in recent times, with me heading off to Europe for my education, but we still kept in touch. Such a shame that her illness has affectively removed some of her better memories."

Peter didn't answer.

"Are you certain the Healers said that they don't have a cure?" Augustus prodded.

"I ask them every time they come by for a checkup. They give me the same answer each time, they don't know what's wrong with her, and they don't know how to fix her," Peter replied monotonously.

"Curious…" Augustus continued his constant tapping against the wall.

"What is?" Peter asked, wanting to smack his cousins hand to get him to stop hitting the wall.

"Curious that the Healers have given up so easily. I'm certain some of the colleagues and acquaintances I have made over the years, could find something to aid a fellow pure blooded witch."

"Do you think that is realistic?" Peter asked, being cautiously optimistic. There is nothing he wanted more in the world than for his mother to return to the way she was when he was growing up. Before her mysterious illness turned deadly serious. However, there had been more than one occasion where the Healers and come up with a promising treatment, only for it to fail when they tried it out. Peter did his best to keep his expectations to a minimum.

"It certainly is realistic. In fact, I think it is quite likely that if they put their heads together they can come up with some sort of solution."

Peter tried his best to keep the look of hope off of his face.

"It was nice visiting you Peter, do pass on my greeting to your mother when she wakes up. I hope you enjoy Yule tomorrow evening," he stated as he made his way to the front door. "Unfortunately, work will be picking up after the celebrations of Yule and I will not have the opportunity to stop by again. Though I will enquire with my friends as to possible treatments for your mother, I promise to stay in contact," he finished before silently apparating away from the house, leaving a particularly hopeful Peter Pettigrew standing in the doorway.

* * *

Frank Longbottom was not enjoying the dinner he was having at the moment. It had nothing to do with the food, in fact the house elves had done a fantastic job as always. It had everything to do with the company. There were few things he disliked more than eating dinner with his mother and uncle together in the same room.

Frank loved his mother, as well as his uncle in his own way. He held nothing against either of them. The Longbottom family had always been a tightknit, loyal and very protective over one another. This had only become more so after the passing of his father.

The problem he had with his mother and uncle was that whenever they had dinner together, the conversations tended to fall into awkward topics, leading to flaring tempers and words that should have never been spoken.

"Remind me again why we're celebrating Yule an entire day early Augusta?" a particularly harsh looking man spoke as he stuffed a hunk of meat into his mouth, juices running through his grey beard.

"My son is going to spend Yule with the Fawley's this year," she answered simply, looking as regal as always with her favourite stuffed vulture hat.

"The Fawley's!" he spat, "I don't think I've ever met a bigger bunch of softies than those people. That family has held a seat in the Wizengamot for over 300 years, and for the last 150 of them its sat empty. What a bloody waste if you ask me, should just give the seat away to a more deserving family who actually wants to participate in the betterment of society."

"While I do agree with you on how it is a waste of a seat, I find that the Fawley's are still a reputable family. Despite their lack of action in political circles, they do routinely donate money to St. Mungo's and to the DMLE. In fact, doesn't Alice want to be an Auror? I think I recall you telling me that in one of your letters."

"She does," Frank muttered, praying that the dinner would end sooner rather than later.

"Speak up boy, you're a pureblood and a Longbottom, you don't mutter!" Algie reminded his nephew strictly.

"My apologies uncle, I was saying that Alice does indeed plan on joining the Aurors upon graduation," Frank put extra care in annunciating each word very clearly.

"Well that's a damn shame, she'd be better off trying to get into the Department of Mysteries. We do real work in there, none of that pussy shit the Aurors do. But then again, she's a witch, so maybe she's not cut out for it," he continued before taking a large sip from his glass of wine.

"I don't know if I heard you correctly, Algie, but did you just insinuate that witches are less capable than wizards," she glared at her brother-in-law. "Would you care for a demonstration of how capable a witch can be, because the dueling room is open and I would be much obliged to get the point across."

"There's no need to get so prickly, Augusta, I didn't mean anything by it," Frank's uncle dismissed as he went to pour himself another glass of wine, "What are your plans for the future, Frank?"

This was the question he had been dreading all night, steeling himself and using his Gryffindor courage, he answered his uncle, "I'm actually planning on applying to the Auror program as well with Alice."

With that, Algie spat his wine across the table, before whipping his wand out and vanishing it in the blink of an eye. "The Auror program… a Longbottom in the Auror program?!" he was talking to himself in horror, "I understand if your frilly little girlfriend wants to join those bunch of pixies, but you…Frank….my nephew, you want to join them as well! What has the world come to!"

"It's not that bad, uncle! I've been told that Alastor Moody handpicks certain recruits he finds promising," Frank tried to placate his uncle, as his irritation grew. He knew Algie would react like this, but it didn't make it any less aggravating.

"Bah! Don't talk to me about that bloody traitor. He was my protégé, I groomed that boy to become the future of our department, and what does he do? He goes off to fight Grindelwald like some fresh faced fool, loses an eye and a leg, and joins the Auror department. I wasted years of my life because of his foolishness," Algie Longbottom sulked at the memory of his former apprentice.

"No matter, no matter," he continued, "I've finally found somebody worthy of replacing Alastor, and believe you me when I tell you that he is twice the wizard Moody was. Oh this kid has it all, the drive, the creativity, the intelligence, and most importantly… the _killer instinct_. The boy is absolutely ruthless, it's like watching a work of art unfold in front of your eyes when observing him work," Algie waxed poetically, sounding as if he was half in love with the man already.

"Are you talking about that guy Rookwood again?" Frank asked curiously.

"Augustus Rookwood… the saviour of the Department of Mysteries. That lad is going to take us places we never dreamed of going. I don't know where he went to school in Europe, but whatever it is they do out there, it's the right way to do things. If I had children, I'd have half a mind to screw Hogwarts and Britain all together, and send my children out to the wilds of the continent. That's a breeding ground for proper wizards and witches if I've ever seen one."

"Is he really that good, Algie?" Augusta asked sounding slightly curious. Augusta's recent years had been spent traversing the political environment of the Wizengamot. She only joined the governing body to honour her deceased husband, and to pick up a hobby that would stimulate her mind while simultaneously keeping it off of the loss of her love. It had only taken a few meetings for her to fall in love with being a full-time politician. She had even given up her love for Herbology and attending the European Duelling Circuit in favour of focusing on her politicking.

"My words don't even do him justice. I'll bring him over one day and introduce him to young Frank here. That man will scare the life out of you boy, but it will be the best damn lesson you will ever learn in life."

Frank gulped nervously. Whoever this man was, he had his uncle eating right out of his hand, and that was definitely not a good thing.

"Augusta, dear, I think it's about time we do the Rights, it is nearing midnight is it not?" Algie inquired just as he finished the last of the food on his plate, pushing it out of the way.

"The Rights? I thought we had to do the Rights on Yule?" Frank asked curiously.

"No Frank, there is enough ambient magic in the air on the nights leading up to Yule in order to perform the Rights. Isn't that right Algie?" his mother explained.

"You are correct, Augusta. The Rights are mostly a symbolic ritual performed on Yule, they do not actually require a lot of magic, as such they do not need to be performed directly on Yule. If you were looking to perform a real ritual, something that took a hell of a lot of power, then you would need to perform it on Yule. Ambient magic is a significant part of performing rituals, and there needs to be enough of it in the air to properly channel the required energy for whatever ritual you are attempting," Algie explained as he made his way around the table, glass in hand.

"Come along Frank," Augusta called her son, "we will need to perform the Rights in a more appropriate setting. I believe your father's old study will be sufficient," she called over her shoulder as she left the dining room with Algie following not too far behind.

Rubbing his face with his hands in exasperation, Frank exhaled harshly. Tonight's dinner had been particularly more brutal than some of the others in more recent memory. Taking a deep breath and readjusting his robes, Frank reminded himself that it would only be another hour or so before he could go to bed and put this day behind him.

* * *

It was absolute chaos for the Black Family in Number 12 Grimmauld Place. Doors were slamming, pots were clanging, and house elves were popping in and out trying their best to maintain the house's immaculate image. The celebrations of Yule were a very important part of pure-blood culture; thus it was of equal importance for the Black Family. It would still be hours before any of their guests arrived, but that did little to stop any of the mad scrambling going on within the house.

Bellatrix Black stood straight backed, looking into an expensive full length mirror, trying out different styles to put her curly raven locks into. She had yet to find one particular style that pleased her, and it was beginning to grate on her nerves. She generally enjoyed looking her best whenever possible, especially on formal occasions, but her behaviour was starting to get ridiculous. For whatever reason, a small ball of anticipation was threatening to burst from her chest and as the party drew closer, she was beginning to feel the onsets of anxiety.

Picking up a facecloth from her dresser and wiping the sweat from her hands for the fifth time in the last few minutes, Bellatrix picked up a few strategically placed strands of hair and tried again. Just as she was about to finish what looked to be her best attempt yet, the door to her room burst open eliciting a gasp in shock and a growl in frustration from the girl who would now need to restart again.

"Is there any particular reason why you ran into my room unannounced, or did you just feel like interrupting me while I get myself ready, Andi?" Bellatrix barely spared her sister a glance.

"I think I have a valid enough reason," Andromeda panted, as she flattened out her dress and fanned herself off with her hand. Recognizing that Bella was in one of her moods, she continued, "I understand how important Yule is for our family, but is it just me or is our family acting just a shade crazier than normal?"

Despite her annoyance towards her sister in that moment for entering her room unannounced and with the grace of a wild Hippogriff, Bellatrix could not deny the truth of her words, "I have noticed that the event today has a little more pomp and circumstance than it normally does. Mother certainly has been acting a little frazzled today, as has Aunt Walburga."

"That's an understatement if I have ever heard one," Andromeda scoffed, "I just watched Walburga screech at Kreacher to go rescrub every single toilet bowl within the house, and then she ordered him to go polish all of the house-elf heads" she said with a grimace. The house-elf heads were a topic of controversy within the Black family, not everyone enjoyed walking passed the heads of their past servants on a regular basis. Walburga seemed to love the display for whatever reason, so it remained up for the time being. "I only just escaped mother as well, she tried to get me to completely change my outfit again. I refused of course, I think I look perfectly presentable."

Looking at her sister, Bellatrix agreed that she looked fine. In fact, she looked better than fine, she looked absolutely gorgeous if truth be told. She wore a simmering silver dress that hung beautifully on her woman's body, and it perfectly matched with her eyes. Not only that, but her hair and makeup was done in a way that matched the style of the dress. It would take hours for Andromeda to change outfits and get herself to look as good as she did right now. "Your attire is passable," Bellatrix said simply.

"Thank you, Bella," a smile spread across her face. She knew her sister well enough to discern her true thoughts on what she looked like.

"Have you seen Narcissa?" Bellatrix asked suddenly.

"Cissy's downstairs pestering Regulus. His sarcasm has little effect on her, and I think he's beginning to regret asking her to help him pick out his clothes," Andromeda smirked, "Why?"

Bellatrix sighed, "I've just been having trouble with getting my hair done. I can't pick out a style that looks good, and I was hoping Cissy could come help me. She's usually quite good with things like that."

"I can help you if you want Bella?" Andromeda asked almost shyly. "But if you want me to get Cissy, I can go downstairs and find her. I'm pretty sure Regulus would give us his eternal gratitude."

Just as Andromeda was going to leave the room, Bellatrix called out to her, "No, stay! I think you'll do a satisfactory job, better than what I have been able to come up with so far."

Bellatrix took a seat in front of her mirror and drew all of her hair behind her shoulders. The two sisters sat in silence for the next twenty minutes, as Andromeda worked on making her sister look as irresistible as possible. It was a rare moment of bonding shared between the two sisters, who's contrasting views and different social circles had driven them apart in recent years. All of that was forgotten in this moment of peace, where Bellatrix and Andromeda were able to play the role of loving sisters just as they used to do when they were children.

This moment was cut short by the echoing sound of a door that was slammed just a bit harder than all of the others. This was accompanied by muffled voices that were slowly increasing in volume, indicating that an argument had broken out within the house. Moments later a loud _crash_ , broke the last remnants of peace in the house.

Scampering out of the room, the sisters descended the stairs and found themselves at the climax of an argument between Arcturus and what looked to be Druella and Walburga.

"What in Salazar's name possessed you to do such a foolish thing, woman!" Lord Black was practically frothing at the mouth. "Over these last few months I have been working day and night, conducting business and gathering information for the betterment of House Black, and this is how you repay me! I come back here, to find that my family has been dealing behind my back!"

Bellatrix and Andromeda stiffened immediately at his words. Sneaking a glance at one another, they mirrored the horrified looks at their Lord's words. Arcturus was a proud man, who could be particularly ruthless to anyone he felt had wronged him. This did not look good for their mother.

"I will not ask you again," the magic of 12 Grimmauld Place seemed to hum in anticipation, "Why was I not told that you invited the Rosier's, Malfoy's and Lestrange's to celebrate Yule with our family?"

The two girls looked at each other again, this time with confusion.

"They are upstanding pure-blooded families who hold respectable amounts of power and are of a similar class to ours. I do not see what the issue is Arcturus?" Walburga Black bravely held her ground. Or foolishly, the two words are very interchangeable at times.

" _Lord Black_ , Walburga! You will refer to me as such when I am speaking in my official capacity!" he snapped at the woman, causing her to flinch slightly, but she still held her ground. "I understand the value of inviting those families to dine with us," Arcturus' voice turned deathly cold, it was the calm, "but I don't care if they were the founders themselves! There are protocols that must be followed! Or do you think that you are above the rules that govern House Black!" and there was the storm.

"But Arc-Lord Black, w-we t-thought you would approve of such an arrangement… we thought you would be pleased," Druella Black spoke up fearfully. Druella was not as strong a woman as Walburga, and Bellatrix knew it would have been better had she not spoken at all. Her mother had practically been cowering while speaking to her grandfather, and Arcturus preyed on fear.

"Do you seek to usurp me, do you believe that you would make a better Lord Black than I, woman! Only those directly connected to the Black Family are to attend our celebration. If you seek to invite members of non-related families, you must first seek approval! I am Lord Black, and even I sought approval and followed protocol!"

"Very well, Lord Black, I seek approval to host the Rosier's, Malfoy's, and Lestrange's this evening for our Yule celebrations and performing of the Rights," Walburga gave an exaggerated curtsy to accompany her request.

"You are playing with fire Walburga, do not mock me!" Arcturus nearly snarled. "I will not deign your request with a response, as I have no choice in the matter! You have already invited those families, and I will not humiliate myself by rejecting their presence at our table. Had you sought me out beforehand, I would have accepted your proposition and would have been honored to host our guests."

"Thank you, thank you!" Druella looked as if she was ready to kiss Arcturus in gratitude. Bellatrix thought her mother looked rather pathetic.

"I warn you… this will not happen again. The next time you speak for the Ancient and Noble House of Black without my express approval, you will find yourself removed from that damn tapestry and without a name! You can join Taurus and Scorpius in the pits of hell with every other bloodtraitor who dared oppose the House of Black. Now get out of my sight and make yourselves look presentable for when our company arrives!" he spat, causing the two women to flee from the room as fast as they possibly could.

Bellatrix nearly fainted at her grandfather's words. Arcturus never made a threat he wasn't willing to go through with. But naming her mother and aunt bloodtraitors, the idea just seemed impossible to her. Yet it was a very real possibility, if her mother and aunt broke their word.

 **Bloodtraitor**

The word terrified her, shook her to her core, and made her feel like little girl who was still afraid of the dark. It was amazing how much power a word, a name, could hold over a person. It made her feel ashamed that she called her cousin Sirius that name only a few months ago. But isn't that exactly what he is? He turned his back on his family, spat on their beliefs and values, rejects…

Her train of thought was broken by the sound of her grandfather's voice, "And you… _my son_ ," his sharp voice came out sarcastically, "Did you know what your wife and sister-in-law were planning?"

Orion Black looked shaken, barely meeting his father's eye, "Walburga was very adamant that we should be honored to host such distinguished guests. She believed you would be pleased with her work," he answered unconvincingly.

"Can you not control your woman! I fought against Grindelwald in single combat and lived to tell the tale, and you can't even face off against your own damn wife!" he roared at his weak willed son. "Sometimes I wonder where I went wrong, how my sweet Melania and I managed to produce a son with no spine. I expect better from you Orion," he finished softly. It was evident that Arcturus held a soft spot for his only son and did not want to further humiliate him in public. "I want you to go and tell your wife that my threat was not made lightly."

Orion quickly nodded and made his way out of the room in search of Walburga.

Looking around, Arcturus came to notice the crowd his verbal bashing had gathered, "This is not a Knockturn Alley soup kitchen, stop loitering as if you are looking for a handout. Do you not have a dinner to prepare for? If I see as much as hair out of place, a wrinkle, or Merlin help me a stain on any of your clothes, I'll be having you do the house-elves work for a week. I think it's about time they get a holiday don't you?" he smirked dangerously, sending every remaining Black family member upstairs to finish their preparations.

"Come Cassi, I wish to speak to you privately," Arcturus called to his sister who had been sitting in the corner of the room enjoying the recent events. Hooking his arm through hers, he escorted his sister into the Lord's Study.

Bellatrix watched her grandfather close the door behind him, with a slacked jaw. She was in awe at the absolute power her grandfather held over the rest of the family. Nobody questioned him, nobody actively spoke out against him, and everyone cowered in fear at what he would do to them if they did. How could anyone question why she loved her grandfather after watching a display like that. Arcturus was her hero.

* * *

"Sirius Black, you have been looking at yourself in that mirror for the last ten minutes. Hurry up and come down before we are late!" Dorea Potter called from beside the fireplace.

"I don't see the issue with me being fashionably late," Sirius laughed as he slid down the bannister and landing gracefully on his feet.

"Yes, well unfortunately I think my family cares more about you showing up fashionably on time. Now come here and let me get a good look at you," she grabbed Sirius by the shoulders, before straightening his brand new set of dress robes and combing his hair into something a little bit more respectable.

"You as well Harry, come here," she took out her wand and waved it in a half circle, removing the excess dust and lint from his sleeves. She took one look at his hair, half-heartedly raised her wand, before lowering it and laughing at his expression, "… just like Charlus and James, absolutely untameable."

"I still don't get why they aren't coming, isn't Uncle Charlus like best friends with my grandfather for whatever reason," Sirius mumbled as he shook his hair into a rebellious mess, undoing all of Dorea's previous work.

"I've told you already, Sirius, Charlus spends the evening of the holidays teaching James the Potter Family Magic. That and because James isn't really welcome at the Black dinner's anymore, ever since he helped you put dungbombs in your mother's underwear drawer. And Harry is coming with us because he agreed to meet with your grandfather, who wanted to meet him," she explained for what had to be the hundredth time in the last few days.

"Right… I still think you're absolutely barmy for agreeing to this Harry," Sirius looked at him as if he had grown a second head.

To be completely honest, Harry was having second guesses over his decision to join the Black's for Yule as well. When the offer came from Arcturus, Harry was tempted to decline, but then he remembered that Arcturus was his great uncle, and Harry wasn't one to pass up on meeting more of his wizarding family. The other reason was more selfish. Spending an evening with the Black family would provide him with invaluable information on the current climate and the war too come.

"Sirius you are the Black heir, so protocol dictates you exit first," Dorea passed her nephew the floo powder and watched as he disappeared in green flames, "Harry the address is 12 Grimmauld Place, please do your best to come out of the correct fireplace and I will be waiting on the other side to catch you when you do," Dorea said before disappearing as well.

Throwing the powder into the fireplace, Harry called out the name to the old headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, and watched as he blew past a blur of different fireplaces. Focusing on the address, Harry managed to exit out the right one and flew right into Dorea's expecting arms, as she promised. With a quick wave of her wand, the soot was cleaned off of him as well.

Looking around at his destination, he was shocked at how _beautiful_ the home really was. The years of disuse after the fall of the House of Black really took its toll on the home, as it looked almost unrecognizable to where he spent the summer before his fifth year.

Where headquarters was a dark, damp, and run down house; Number 12 Grimmauld Place was a richly decorated townhouse, filled with Victorian era ornamentations and what looked to be a collection of priceless artifacts and art. The air no longer felt as if it were saturated with dark magic, and the never ending feeling of evil was noticeably absent as well.

The layout of the house was the same, and Harry was certain that he could navigate his way through the rooms without difficulty, but that was where the parallels between the two versions stopped.

The silver haired man that Harry spotted at the train station was now approaching them, after already greeting Sirius. "Dorea, my days are always brighter when you treat me with your presence," he strode over and brought Dorea into a very warm embrace before kissing both of her cheeks, "I know Cassi is just dying to see you, I admit I am a bit jealous, she's never been so excited to see me before."

"That's because you are her brother Arcturus, there are a limited number of things that woman enjoys more than 'sister talk.' Unfortunately, that is one thing you are not able to provide her with, unless you have performed a particular ritual in the few days between I last saw you," she teased, getting a heartfelt laugh out of her brother.

Judging by the sound of the laugh, Harry figured that Arcturus didn't do so often.

"I would like to introduce you to, Harry Peverell," Dorea indicated to Harry, "Charlus and I have decided to name him our honorary nephew," she smiled kindly.

Harry remembered the conversation that occurred last night, and all of the emotions that came with. To him, just meeting his grandparents was enough to satisfy him, and spending time with him was just a bonus. But when they told him that they acknowledged him as a nephew, it took every last bit of occlumency to keep the tears back.

"Really now," Arcturus had a keen look in his eye, "well let me be the first to offer you my congratulations. There are few families in higher standing than the Potters. "

"Thank you, Lord Black," Harry inclined his head politely.

"It seems that my reputation precedes me," Arcturus gave a fake laugh, "I am indeed Arcturus Black, Head of the Black Family, it is a pleasure to meet you Harry Peverell," he gave Harry a firm shake. "In fact it's quite the honor to meet someone with such an ancient bloodline. I read in one of our family tomes that the Black's held a day of mourning when the last of the Peverell's died, it brings me much joy to see that they were mistaken."

"Yes, well the Peverell family has quite the affinity for death and resurrection, so some might find it fitting," Harry tested the waters to see how much Arcturus Black knew about the Peverell family.

It appeared that he knew more than most, as a pleased smirk crossed his face, "Ah, an intelligent one, I do hope my dear nephew James does not feel threatened by Harry here," he said looking at Dorea.

"Oh I wouldn't worry, James, Harry, and Sirius are practically inseparable most of the time. Though I am glad that Harry leaves the troublemaking and pranks to the other two."

"As much as I would love to stay and chat with you all evening, Dorea, I must make my rounds and prepare for some unexpected arrivals," Arcturus added with frown creasing his forehead.

"Unexpected arrivals?" Dorea looked slightly worried.

"The Malfoy's, Rosier's, and Lestrange's to be precise. It seems that Druella and Walburga took it upon themselves to expand the guest list without consulting me ahead of time."

"I imagine that went over well," Dorea rolled her eyes.

"Quite well if you ask me, the two of them have yet to be in the same room as me since. Though, Bellatrix has taken to following me like a lost puppy, however in my opinion the benefits outweigh the costs," and with that Lord Black went to go speak with a newly arriving member of the Black family.

Harry had noticed that the atmosphere in the Black townhouse did feel a bit tense, and knowing the reason why only made it more so. Based off of her portrait, Walburga Black must have been a very proud witch, and Harry figured it would be best for him to avoid her in case she was in a particularly vindictive mood.

After Dorea went over to her sister Cassiopeia, Harry made his way through the various rooms with ease, searching for Sirius in the hopes that he wouldn't need to strike up a conversation with a random member of the Black family.

"So you are who my grandfather was referring to when he was saying he followed protocol," a voice to his left caught Harry's attention. Turning around, he recognized Sirius and was about to ask him what he was talking about. As he approached Sirius, he wondered at what point did he find a comb to clean up his hair, and when he decided to start standing like a staunch pureblood.

"Regulus Black," Harry greeted the boy, after coming to the realization that it was in fact not Sirius. The differences between the two slowly became more apparent. The grey eyes were the same, but the broader nose, thicker eyebrows, and less handsome face distinguished the two.

"Harry Peverell, I find myself wondering why my grandfather personally invited you to celebrate Yule with us over the likes of the Crouch's, the Flint's, or the Selwyn's. Surely you didn't use the _Marauder_ charm on him to swindle an invitation," if there was any doubt over whether he was talking to Sirius or Regulus, it was no question now. The cool sarcastic tone of the younger Black was in stark contrast to the cocky lilt that characterized Sirius' voice.

"I figured he wanted to meet me. He said it brought him great joy to know that an ancient bloodline did not die like it was commonly believed."

"If living on through squibs is considered living at all. I'd rather see my family die than have to endure that," Harry bristled at the slight to his fake squib parents. Which didn't make much sense in Harry's mind, but he didn't care. "He could have simply met you at the train station, I see no reason for him to have invited you," Regulus continued.

"I wasn't with the Potter's on the platform when they greeted your family, I was meeting with the Vance's," Harry explained himself, despite not wanting to make excuses for a child two years his junior.

"Ah, right your girlfriend is Emmeline, it seemed to have slipped my mind. I do commend you on your choice of woman, Emmeline is quite attractive and the Vance's are a reputable family. Her mother is a Rosier as well," Regulus added as if that were a compliment, when in fact Harry thought nothing positive could ever come from Emmeline's mother. "That is a good enough reason, I suppose. I wasn't there either, I was speaking to Severus' mother," Regulus traded information, clearly he was a Slytherin at heart.

"I was looking for your brother, do you know if he passed by?" Harry asked hoping to end his little chat with Regulus Black.

"Isn't everyone… the prodigal son has returned!" he mocked, "Or at least that has been what the family's been saying for the past four years when he joins us for Yule. I do not see why they get themselves all excited only to be disappointed every year," Regulus added spitefully, more to himself than to Harry.

"Sorry, but I was under the impression that your family disliked Sirius, why would they be celebrating his return?" Harry asked with genuine curiosity.

"Oh don't get me wrong, they strongly dislike his attitude towards his family and the disrespect he has for our values, but that doesn't mean they dislike him as a whole. He is the Heir of Black, despite what Sirius wants to believe, that title holds weight. What family doesn't want a handsome, confident, and talented heir. My family recognizes that Sirius would be the perfect heir, except for one fatal flaw. He hates us."

"I don't think he necessarily hates you… hate is a very strong word, perha-"

"No, he hates us," Regulus cut off Harry, wincing at his lack of decorum, "Pardon me, but as I was saying, he hates our family. You have known him for about… four months?" he asked rhetorically, "I have known Sirius my entire life. I believe I have a fairly accurate assessment of how he feels towards the Black's."

"You sound as if you resent him? Do you wish to be the heir?" Harry dug deeper looking to gather more information. He knew he was risking an outburst from Regulus but in his mind it was worth the risk.

But then, Regulus surprised him by bursting out into laughter. Harry stood awkwardly waiting for Regulus to control himself, while other guests were staring at the two of them with looks of disapproval.

"I resent Sirius for many things," Regulus started after composing himself, "but being the heir is not one of them," he stated without a hint of a lie. A gallon of Veritaserum wouldn't have given a more truthful answer. "Now if you will excuse me, I will be off to speak to somebody who won't pry into my family's internal politics," Regulus spoke as he left Harry standing on his own, trying to figure out the meaning behind his words.

"You continue to surprise me with how much of a moron you can be sometimes," a sweet voice with a sharp edge came from behind him, "Insulting a member of the direct line of Black within his own home. I knew Gryffindor's were reckless, but you were really pushing it there."

Turning around, Harry couldn't help but gape at the sight that met him. Bellatrix Black stood in front of him, hand on her hip, drink in hand, and a self-satisfied smirk on her red lips. Many different adjectives came to mind in describing her in that moment, but Harry settled on gorgeous and deadly. Harry fought to keep his eyes above her shoulders, but that only caused him to focus on her shining raven tresses, "I like your hair," he blurted out.

Obviously Bellatrix was not expecting such a blunt and simple response, especially a compliment at that, and a blush crept up her pale skin, "Thanks…Andi-Andromeda did it for me," she corrected. "What are you doing here?" she questioned sharply, her normal countenance returning.

"I believe I was invited," Harry gave her a teasing smirk at her obvious question, "Personally invited by Lord Arcturus Black I might add."

"Why would he do that?"

"Maybe he heard about how we are such good friends," Harry remarked sarcastically, "How's your patronus coming along?" Harry asked, genuinely interested if she managed to learn the notoriously difficult spell.

"Good," she replied perhaps a little too quickly, "I've pretty much got it down," she lied.

"Corporeal?"

"Not yet… I think it is just a matter of time before I get it," she lied again, knowing very well how she gave up on learning the spell and vowed to never try it again.

"Just keep practicing, it takes a lot of time to build up the stamina to cast it repeatedly and for extended periods of time. You're a talented witch Bellatrix, I'm sure you'll get it sooner rather than later."

"Thanks," she felt a little bashful with the praise, "So how are you enjoying the Black family Yule celebration so far?" she asked, talking a sip of what Harry guessed was some sort of expensive elven wine.

"I've found it… interesting thus far," Harry picked his words carefully, "I haven't mingled with the other guests much. Before you came, I had only spoken to your grandfather and Regulus. Any suggestions on who I should avoid given the chance?" Harry asked as he looked across the room at what must have been the largest collection of purebloods in one place that he had ever seen.

"Definitely stay away from the Crabbe and Burke side of the family… oh and the Yaxley branch as well. Nobody really likes them all that much, they tend to do their own thing and we're okay with that. I'd also recommend staying away from Walburga, Sirius' mum tonight as well, her ego took a hard hit and I wouldn't put it past her to take her anger out on somebody."

"Your grandfather said something about her overstepping her authority earlier. Inviting Malfoy and his ilk wasn't it?" Harry asked, hoping Bellatrix would fill in some of the gaps in knowledge.

"Yes, my mother and Walburga had a massive lapse in judgement. A particular protocol most be followed when inviting non-Black members to our family functions. Arcturus must have asked the senior members of the family if they would allow your presence, and my guess is that your last name was intriguing enough for them to ignore your squib parents. My mother and aunt, did not seek permission before inviting the Malfoy's, Rosier's, and Lestrange's. Arcturus was particularly ruthless in his chastisement of them this afternoon when he found out."

Arcturus was a scary enough man to begin with, Harry couldn't imagine what he looked like when enraged. A shiver travelled down Harry's spine just thinking about it.

"Should I warn Sirius about his mother?" Harry asked, hoping Walburga would be smart enough not to attack her son at a formal gathering.

"Sirius is safe for tonight. Walburga is quite vicious when speaking about her son, but he's under my grandfather's protection tonight."

"And who's protection am I under, or should I be afraid?" Harry joked lightly.

"You're under my protection for tonight," Bellatrix didn't know why she said it, but she meant it.

"I feel safer already," Harry smiled, "though I wouldn't mind having Lord Black watching my back either. It looks as if everyone here would run for the lives if he so much as drew his wand."

"That's because they probably would," Bellatrix laughed easily.

"You admire him?" Harry half asked, half stated.

"I do, it's very hard not to. I try to spend as much time possible with him when I can. When you have the chance to learn directly from a powerful wizard you don't turn down the offer."

"I wouldn't know, a lot of what I do is self-taught," Harry shrugged.

Before their conversation could go any further, a soft _pop_ could be heard throughout the room. Standing in the doorway was a house elf dressed in a miniature uniform bearing the Black Family Crest, "Master Black is inviting guests to make their ways into the Dining Room," it spoke with much better English than he had heard from any other house-elf.

The crowd of people slowly made their way to the dining room, where dinner was about to be served. Silver plates and golden utensils lined the table, which must have been magically expanded, and candles floated throughout the room giving it an intimate lighting.

Harry spotted Arcturus standing at the head of the table with Sirius to his left and Orion to his right. Dorea was near the head of the table as well, talking animatedly with what was probably her sister Cassiopeia. Regulus sat beside his mother, doing his best to ignore her fussing over him. Realizing that close family was sitting at that end of the table, Harry turned to sit where the more distant relatives were finding their seats.

"What are you doing?" Bellatrix hissed into his ear, stopping him by grabbing hold of his arm.

"I don't think I shou-" Harry started.

"Don't be an idiot Peverell, you're sitting beside me. I don't feel like sitting with some air-headed fool, where it will take every ounce of my self-restrain not to cut out their tongue to stop their incessant blabbering, so I'm going to have to make do with you. Besides you're under my protection this evening," she dragged Harry to a pair of empty seats beside Andromeda.

Once everyone had taken their seats, the sound of tinkling crystal drew the attention of every eye to the head of the table where Arcturus stood. Silence rang throughout the room as Arcturus paused before beginning to ensure that he had everyone's complete attention, "I welcome you all to the annual Black Family Yule celebration. On behalf of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black, I welcome family both near and far to our table here today. I also welcome our _special_ guests this evening, The Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy, The Ancient and Noble House of Lestrange, and The Ancient and Noble House of Rosier," he indicated politely to the far end of the table, though his eyes only sought out Walburga and Druella. "I would also like welcome another guest, who only recently returned to Britain, and agreed to attend this evening under my own invitation, The Ancient and Most Noble House of Peverell," Arcturus gave him a curt nod.

Looking around the table Harry caught Sirius' eyes, who raised his brows in surprise at who Harry was sitting next too. When looking at Dorea, she was only smirking at him.

Receiving a sharp elbow to the side, Harry supressed the urge to yelp in pain and looked to Bellatrix on his right side. " _Say something_ ," she hissed to him under her breath, before covertly sending another elbow into the exact same spot.

Practically jumping to his feet in order to stay out of the range of Bellatrix's boney elbows, Harry corrected his posture and put on his best pureblood impression, "On behalf of House Peverell, I thank you for your hospitality Lord Black, it is an honour to share my Yule celebrations with your family," Harry intoned to the proud lord, feeling quite pleased with what he managed to come up with on the spot.

"You are most welcome, Heir Peverell, it is equally an honour to share our table with you," Arcturus replied, indicating to Harry that it was appropriate to sit down again. "Our elves have put in a substantial amount of work preparing tonight's dinner, I do hope you enjoy yourselves this evening," and with a wave of his hands, food suddenly appeared on the table in the same manner that it does at Hogwarts.

"Why did I have to get up and speak?" Harry turned to ask Bellatrix as she started selectively piling food on her plate, "The Malfoy's, Lestrange's, and Rosier's didn't," he pointed out.

Peering over at him, Bellatrix rolled her violet eyes at his lack of understanding, "That is because you came as an invited guest of my grandfather. Had it not been for my mother and Walburga, the other families wouldn't even be here."

"Won't they feel insulted?"

"Not necessarily," she paused, thinking over the situation, "the other families don't know that Walburga went behind my grandfather's when inviting them. They still think that my grandfather gave his approval to Walburga when she sent her invitation, which is a pretty big honour in of itself. The only thing they might feel insulted at, is that you were _personally_ invited by the Lord, while they weren't. But then again, your last name is Peverell so it's not like he invited some random mud-muggleborn in their place."

Harry held back the urge to speak out against Bellatrix's slip of the tongue, he figured that he would be hearing much worse as the night wore on, and the alcohol flowed.

The rest of the dinner moved along nicely, as he conversed lightly with Bellatrix and Andromeda. The food was delicious, he had yet to eat a meal cooked by a house-elf that didn't taste superb. He indulged himself in perhaps a bit too much wine, but that only made the evening pass by easier.

Bellatrix would lean over every few minutes and whisper into his ear some sort of embarrassing story or insult regarding one of the multitude of guests in attendance. It was likely that she had too much wine as well, as she giggled more and more with each story she told; and was leaning closer and pressing into him more as the night wore on.

Harry was enjoying himself perhaps a little too much. The smell of vanilla and peach was overwhelming his senses, his vision was swaying, his head was pounding, his heart was racing, and suddenly he was feeling much too hot to be stuck in a crowded room.

Excusing himself from the table, Harry rushed out of the room before he emptied the contents of his stomach onto the priceless Nundu pelt rug decorating the floor.

Letting memory take over, Harry made his way through Number 12 Grimmauld Place and eventually found himself on a small balcony overlooking the park across the street. When looking at the house from the outside, muggle repelling wards and concealment spells hid the existence of the balcony from the outside world. This was a place of sanctuary during his 5th year, a place where he could escape from his friends and the Order, and spend time with his godfather. It was on this balcony, that Sirius told him the regrets he held towards his family and how Voldemort tore them apart.

"Not many people now of this place," a silky voice came from beside him. Harry looked to his left and spotted an older woman dressed in a more conservative black dress. Her dark hair had streaks of silver that matched the moonlight pouring out from behind the clouds covering the night sky.

"I-I a-a-apologize ma'am, I uh, didn't know that someone was already out here," Harry managed to get out just before turning to leave.

"Don't be foolish young man, there certainly is enough room out here for two," she tapped the stone railing beside her, telling Harry to go join her.

The two of them stood in complete silence, letting the cool wintery air wash over them. The pounding in Harry's head had subsided, and he no longer felt as if his blood was boiling. After a while, he could begin to feel the sting of cold on his cheeks and his nose started to run; yet he refused to move and continued to watch the starless sky.

"I hate nights like these," the woman spoke up again, not looking at Harry, "The Black's were named after the stars. Named for their unrivalled beauty and unattainability. One can observe the stars from afar, reach for them if they tried, but they could never be counted among them. There is no beauty in the world when our namesake's are hidden from us," the unknown woman spoke out loud almost as if she was speaking to the stars themselves.

Harry remained silent, allowing the woman to speak what was on her mind.

"There was a story I was told once by my father one night before going to bed, it spoke of a wizard who had fallen in love with the stars. The wizard rarely slept, spending entire nights gazing at the twinkling orbs that littered the night sky. It was said that on nights like these, he would weep for the world to hear, crying out that the loves of his life did not come to visit him. When I was young I would giggle at this part of the story, the man sounded to me like a silly old wizard who had sniffed a few too many cauldron bottoms in his day," she smiled serenely.

"It turned out that this wizard was the sole heir to a wealthy estate. He had no family, no children, and the man was getting on in age. Witches from all across the world came to visit this man at his home in the hopes of securing his hand in marriage and inheriting the riches of his family. The man refused them all, stating that none of them compared to the beauties that visited him every night before he fell asleep. Eventually, the women gave up and left the man to die on his own.

As time went on, gazing at the stars no longer satisfied the man, he longed for more. Looking at the stars one evening, he found his solution... he would steal the stars. He would take them from the sky and turn them into flesh, so that they would never be parted from him again. However, the wizard quickly realized that he lacked the power to complete such a feat of nature. As a result, he murdered thousands of innocents, capturing them to use in rituals of the vilest magic. In the end, the wizard fell into insanity and withered away slowly, dragging as many innocent souls down with him."

Harry had no idea what to say in response to that story. If those were the type of bedtime stories the Black's told their children, then it came as no surprise that so many of them ended up the way they did.

"Dorea has had a lot of good things to say about you, Mr. Peverell," the woman spoke up again.

"Thank you…?" Harry paused still not knowing the woman's name.

"Cassiopeia Black," she answered simply, still not looking at Harry.

Harry sighed internally at finding out that this borderline insane witch was his aunt. He was beginning to come to the realization that he was related to very few normal people.

"I was reminded of that story this evening… I feel as if someone will try to steal the stars again, and just like before they will stoop to the lowest of levels to try and accomplish their goal," the woman suddenly twisted her head to face Harry; her violet eyes, so much like Bellatrix's, pierced his soul, "Protect my nieces Mr. Peverell," she snapped before abruptly departing the balcony.

Closing his eyes, Harry took a few minutes to process the absurdity of that situation before heading back inside. He had just made it to the first floor landing before sharp finger nails dug into his upper arm and forcefully twisted his body around.

"Where the hell did you go!?" Bellatrix practically shrieked.

Harry could feel a headache starting to develop. "I wasn't feeling to well, and I went out for some air. What is it to you Bellatrix?" Harry demanded. The flash of hurt that crossed Bellatrix's face confirmed the fact that his words were sharper than intended.

"Because you left me all alone at the dinner table, I had a whole host of idiots try to come up and talk to me. I blame you!" she poked her finger into his chest.

"Funny, I remember you telling me that I was under your protection for the evening. From the sound of things, I think it was actually me protecting you," Harry gave her the famous Potter grin.

Bellatrix flushed, but the dark light of the hallway hid most of it, "Is there a reason you are being particularly insufferable this evening, because I know a fair few curses that could change that," she growled. "There's this one I read about the other day that peels back a certain part of the male anatomy like a banana sk-"

"Alright, alright, I get the picture Bellatrix. I'd rather you kept that curse to yourself, or at least as far away from me as possible."

"Bella, Bella, Bella! Are you here?" a frantic whisper sounded from the stairs.

"Andi?" Bellatrix responded as the eldest Black sibling came rushing up the stairs, with her dressed hitched up in one hand to help with her movement.

"Merlin, you need to help me Bella. Evan Rosier hasn't left me alone since dinner ended, I only just managed to slip away saying I had to re-charm my hair in place."

"Evan Rosier?" Harry asked for clarification, he remembered Moody telling him the story of when they dueled in the war. Rosier was a fanatic who wouldn't surrender, and took a chunk out of Moody's nose with a spare wand after being disarmed of his first. Moody killed him for that.

"Peverell? You're here too? Good, the more the merrier I say. Maybe he'll leave me alone if he sees the three of us together. What are you two doing up here anyways?" she gave Bellatrix a look.

"I am under the protection of Bellatrix this evening; she thinks that some undesirables will try to take advantage of little old me if I'm left alone," Harry joked, earning a high-heeled stomp on his foot.

"That's lovely," she said quickly, looking quite desperate, "Now I am under the protection of both of you, and undesirable number one is Evan Rosier."

"What did he even want with you?" Harry asked curiously.

"Ugh, I don't even want to know what was going through his mind. He was being so slimy and was touching me every chance he got. It was really uncomfortable, and he was talking as if I would be seeing him again soon. Shagging Ted when I get back to Hogwarts can't be coming soon enough," she shuddered, before blushing furiously at what she accidentally let slip.

 _Protect my nieces Mr. Peverell_

The voice of Cassiopeia Black echoed throughout his head. Her words were definitely not a coincidence. Harry had lived through enough absurd events to think otherwise.

"Why don't we head back down, the Rights should be performed soon," Harry spoke up suddenly. The last thing he wanted to do was run into Rosier and his friends in a secluded part of the house, it would be better to chance a meeting with them in a public area.

Heading down the stairs with the two sisters following behind and returning to the ground floor, it seemed that fortune was smiling upon them that day. Just as they returned to the party, the boys they were looking to avoid entered the room and looked around as if in search of somebody.

The eyes of the young purebloods lit up with anticipation at the sight of the Black sisters, but dimmed when landing on Harry. Unfortunately, his presence was not enough to deter them from coming over.

"Well isn't it the man of the hour," Rodolphus Lestrange announced pompously as he approached, "it such an honor to meet with a distinguished guest like you, Peverell. I almost feel as if I should be blushing like a maid in your presence," he mocked, getting a laugh out of his friends. His brother found it particularly funny.

"Pleasure to meet you Heir Peverell," a young man with dark hair and green-blue eyes extended a hand, "I'd like to thank you for finding Andromeda for me, I was afraid she had gotten lost in her own family's home."

Harry reluctantly shook the man's hand. "The pleasure is all mine, I was pleased to hear upon arriving that your family's would be joining us this evening," Harry attempted to be as sincere as possible.

"I was surprised myself with your attendance, Peverell, I didn't get the impression that you cared for wizarding culture from our time together at Hogwarts," Malfoy drawled.

"I could hardly refuse an personal invitation from Lord Black himself, could I?" Harry countered.

"No, of course not, it would be blasphemous to deny such an hour. However, I do find it interesting how quickly some forget about parentage in the face of an ancient name," Lucius smirked at his thinly veiled insult.

"I honestly wouldn't know; I am not very experienced in bowing to the whims of people with ancient names," Harry knew he was playing with fire here. At this point in time, the existence of Voldemort was a well-guarded secret, something Harry should not know. However, he couldn't resist the urge to stir up the hornet's nest.

"You are remarkably well informed for a boy without parents," Lucius snapped, losing his composure for a fraction of a second.

Totally worth it in Harry's opinion. Not only did he royally piss off Lucius Malfoy, but the shocked expression on the other boys' faces told Harry that Voldemort was started to make moves amongst the pureblood elite. The lack of reaction from the Black girls also told him that Voldemort had yet to approach them.

"Lucius," Rosier warned the younger boy, "I think Mr. Peverell here was simply making a joke. I see no reason to remind him of what must have been a terrible loss on his part. Besides, look at him now, he's come from virtually nothing to rubbing shoulders with the elite of society in just under a year. He seems to be quite the resourceful boy," Rosier turned to face Harry again, "This is his first taste of power, I'm certain that after tonight he'll be craving more. Ambitious men will always have a place in this world, especially the one that we envision."

If that wasn't a recruitment speech, Harry did not know what was. Unfortunately, before Rosier could try and seal the deal, they were interrupted by the clock chiming midnight.

"It is time to perform the Rights!" Arcturus' magically amplified voice could be heard throughout the house, "Can all our distinguished guests come join us in the dining room, where we shall finish our celebrations of Yule and cleanse ourselves for the year to come."

Harry released an internal sigh of relief at not needing to speak any longer with Voldemort's most recent recruits. Instead he quickly slipped away with Bellatrix and Andromeda, where they returned to their seats from dinner. This time, however, in the place of cutlery and plates, there were small ceremonial bowls and knives.

Dorea and Charlus had given him the basics on the Rights that purebloods perform on major holidays. It mostly involved cutting open your hand and letting blood drip into the bowl while reciting a prayer to Magic. The only part that Harry felt unsure about was that at the end of the Rights, everyone had to drink their newly 'cleansed' blood from the bowl.

With his voice still magically enhanced, Arcturus cleared his throat, effectively silencing the room.

" _ **Here us today where we offer onto you our prayers. We look upon to you for guidance in our lives, and seek to better ourselves for your sake. You flow through our veins. By air, wind, fire, and water, you connect our world together. It was through you that all things were made, and through you that we seek to connect to your creation. We offer onto you our blood for you to cleanse and give us new life. We offer this to you, to remain pure of heart, pure of mind, and pure of soul. We are forever your faithful servants, and seek to become one with you when our time has come. By air, by wind, by fire, by water, we offer our blood to you."**_

Arcturus lead the chant the first time on his own, after which everyone cut open their hands and let their blood drain into the bowls during the second and third repetition of the prayer. Harry spoke quietly under his breath, not being too familiar with the process as it was the first time he had performed the Rights. However, others were taking the ceremony very serious.

Looking across at his grandmother Dorea, Harry noticed that her eyes were closed and she was reciting the words with outmost devotion. Surprisingly to Harry, Sirius was clearly speaking the words without hesitation. Beside him, Bellatrix looked fanatical in the amount of emotion she was putting into her prayer. Harry thought he noticed tears leaking down her face, and observing the rest of the room, she wouldn't have been the only one.

By the time the third chant had been completed, Harry felt a noticeable change in the magic of the room. Before, there was a constant humming that emanated from Number 12 Grimmauld Place, but now the Black townhouse was practically singing with magic.

As if in a trance, Harry picked up his bowl of blood and drank it like it was the elixir of life straight from the Philosopher's Stone itself. Immediately upon swallowing, Harry felt new life flow into him. He felt light as a feather, and energized beyond belief. If someone told him to run to Hogwarts and back, he would ask how many times and how fast. Looking around the table with a greedy look in his eye, Harry tried to spot if there were any extra bowls he could drink out of.

The high of the ritual lasted only a few seconds more, before he returned to normal. Feeling like himself again, Harry focused inwards on his magic. It felt different. It felt faster, more free flowing, almost as if he had sludge in his veins before. If this is what a basic ritual felt like, Harry could only imagine what darker more advanced rituals felt like afterwards. It made sense why people found them so addictive, and why countless witches and wizards fell prey to their allure and succumbed to the darkness.

"Harry!" the sound of Dorea's voice, broke Harry away from the feel of his own magic, "It's time for us to return home. Thank you for looking after him girls," Dorea turned to Andromeda and Bellatrix before kissing each of them on the forehead goodbye.

"Where's Sirius? Has he already gone home?" Harry asked Dorea noticing that his friend wasn't there with them.

Dorea shook her head, "He's staying the night… and perhaps the next few days," she whispered into his ear.

Harry was shocked, and looked into his grandmother's face to see if there was any hint of deception. There wasn't.

"I'd like to see James and Charlus before going to bed, Harry, it is time to go," she repeated, not allowing Harry to think too much on Sirius' decision.

"Bye Peverell," Bellatrix paused awkwardly in front of him, before giving him a quick hug and releasing him immediately afterwards.

"I'll see you both at school," Harry gave Andromeda and Bellatrix a smile, "and tell Narcissa I missed seeing her. Oh, and tell Regulus it was nice meeting him as well," Harry didn't really mean that last part, but he thought it would be a kind thing to say to the boy.

After waving goodbye one last time, Harry quickly followed Dorea through the floo and back to the Potter's home. When he finally made his way to bed, Harry's mind could only think about how exhausting it had been to act as a pureblood that evening, and how he could hardly imagine what it would be like to live that way every single day of his life.

 **AN**

 **I hope you enjoyed this update! I realize that it has been a few months since my last update. I apologize for the delay, but school takes up almost all of my time during the year. There won't be another update to this story until after the third week of April, but after my exams are finished regular updates should be appearing for this story. It would be something like once, maybe twice a** **week, depending on how often I update my other story alongside this one.**

 **If anyone felt like Harry got off a little to easy for his weeks disappearance, I will tell you right now not to worry. The repercussions of his foray into the Chamber of Secrets will unfold as the story continues to develop.**

 **Speaking about my other story, I recently updated it and I personally think it was the best bit of writing I have put out so far. Go check it out if you haven't already! If you enjoy INGAE then I think you'll definitely enjoy ABL.**

 **The next chapter should wrap up the holidays from Lily's POV and a few others, before returning to Hogwarts to finish up the school year.**

 **Reviews are always appreciated! Let me know your thoughts on the story so far and what happened in this chapter particularly. Also, feel free to let me know what you think will happen next and where you'd like the story to go from here. I love hearing your thoughts, and it help me write a better story.**

 **Until next time.**


	18. Chapter 18

There was nothing more soothing than the soft simmering of a heating cauldron, nor the delicate tinkle of crystal vials as they are swiftly moved around. Time slowed to a stop in the preparation of a potion. Nothing existed save the potioneer and their work. It was an art, a delicate process accomplished by many but mastered only by a few.

Dealing in Potions is a lucrative business. There is money to be made by someone who knew their way around a cauldron, both inside and outside the law. It would be an honour for anyone in Britain to be accepted into the Most Extraordinary Society of Potioneers. But that paled in comparison to the pinnacle of brewing, something any old Apothecary owner could never hope to achieve, reserved only for the prodigies and those who had dedicated their lives to the art. A Potions Master. It was the seal of recognition by the ICW that you were one of the elite, that you were worth something. It separated the competent, from the dunderheads.

It was Severus Snape's dream.

Unrestricted access to the world's most limited and valuable ingredients, the transcripts of old masters, and information on the latest developments in the field.

It was true that he had a fascination with darker aspects of magic, but nothing captivated him so much as the subtle science and exact art of potion-making. Where he didn't have to rely on a wand to experience true power, where he could bewitch the mind and ensnare the senses of anyone he wanted.

A slip of the wrist, a missing ingredient, or the combination of two, and he could have anyone begging on their knees, pleading for sweet release, weeping for a chance to escape their torment. Oh to have that much power, it resonated with Severus' Slytherin nature.

His lips quirked as his cauldron of Draught of Living Death came to completion, matching the exact crystalline clarity described in the various texts he had come across. He made a mental note to send a letter of thanks to Lucius for acquiring some of the more sensitive ingredients. It was a complex brew, one he wouldn't encounter in his OWLs, but he had long surpassed that level anyway.

He opened his journal, heading a section for the potion he had just created, and marked down a few alterations he was interested in testing out in the effort to create a purer version. Lily would find it fascinating when he showed her.

 _Lily._

A name that always brought a smile to his face. One of the very few things that managed to do so in his life. He had acted such a fool this year, pushing their friendship to its limits in the worst way possible. He wasn't blind to the tension building between them whenever they spoke, and the way she unconsciously distanced herself from him.

She was so frustrating.

Severus wanted to shake her, to kiss her, to fuck her. He wanted her to be his, only his. She belonged to him. He was her first friend, he had introduced her to magic, he saved her from the filthy world of Muggles and that horrid sister of hers.

She should want to be with him. It only made sense after everything he had done for her. Instead of being rewarded, he was being punished.

He saw the looks of disgust she shot his friends when he was with them, he saw the flicker of uncertainty in her eyes whenever he spoke of the Dark Arts, he saw the accusatory glares she sent him whenever a Mudblood or Bloodtraitor was cursed in the corridor or sent to the Hospital Wing.

Lily wasn't stupid. He liked that about her, the fact she was almost as intelligent as him. It's what made them so compatible. She knew he played a role in some of the attacks. Especially when he cursed Melinda Crowfet. Too many people saw that.

He saw so much potential in her, if only she separated herself from those fools she spent her time with. She wasn't like the other mudbloods. But whenever he brought it up with her, she'd leave before he could explain. He wanted to scream at her, to make her understand what she could be. What he could make her, if she accepted him and his friends, and became the Slytherin she should have been from the beginning.

Things were getting out of hand. He was losing control of her. Every day that passed, she spent more and more time with Potter and his crew of misfits.

His blood boiled with hatred at the very thought of the leader of the Marauders, strutting around as if he owned the damn castle. He was nothing more than a hack, who's only talent was looking good on a broom. A typical Gryffindor, considering himself above all others, a spoiled brat with loving parents, friends falling all over him, and a vault full of galleons.

He thought back to the days when he would sit by the lake and make fun of Potter with Lily at his side. He remembered her initial hesitance to make fun of Potter, one of his fondest memories was when he eventually convinced her to join in and see Potter for what he truly was.

Each rejection was sweeter than the next, and the words 'arrogant prat' and 'filthy toe rag' brought him almost as much pleasure as fantasizing what he will do when he finally has Lily. How she'll pleasure him without a second thought, her pale form writhing underneath him, never thinking of Potter again.

It was enough to get his blood flowing, forcing him to readjust his robes.

These were dreams he had been harbouring for years. His friends would understand; he would make them understand. The opportunity of stealing a mudblood from underneath the nose of her bloodtraitor friends would be too sweet to pass up.

Everything was so simple before that bastard Peverell showed up. If there was one person he blamed the sudden shift in Lily's behaviour, it was him. The clone of Potter. If one wasn't bad enough, a second one simply had to come waltzing in and get sorted right into Gryffindor, and cozy up with the Marauders.

He hated him for one simple reason. His eyes. The fool who looked so much like Potter, had the audacity to steal Lily's eyes. Those shining emerald orbs that were unique only to her; and he came in wearing her eyes… on Potter's face. It was a nightmare come to life, like he was staring at the product of love between Lily and Potter. Impossible. She was his, not Potter's. The thought killed the swelling in his pants.

He thought himself to be so perfect. The Golden Boy of Gryffindor. He was just as worthless as Potter. The product of two squibs if rumours were true, practically a dirty muggle and worse than a mudblood.

Yet somehow, everyone loved him. The professors, the students… _Lily_. It was like a bludgeoning curse to the stomach, the way she practically hanged onto him. Not even a week into the school year, and he could tell she cared for him. He was stealing her… he was stealing his Lily.

He wasn't the only one that disliked Peverell. He could hear the whispering of some of the Purebloods around school, furious at the fact that the product of squibs had the Peverell name. That such an ancient and powerful family, one entrenched in folklore and the mysteries of magic, could be given to a worthless wretch like him.

Him swooping in and picking up the most eligible pureblood witch in the school didn't do him any favours either. Emmeline Vance was seen to be a prize possession.

" _Boy!"_ A harsh voice could be heard through the wall. " _Boy! Get down here now!_ "

Sneering in disgust at the owner of the voice, Snape quickly packed away his supplies, and applied a slight bit of pressure on a discolored patch of wood on the edge of the wall. In what could only be a feat of magic, a door materialized and silently swung open into dusty hallway illuminated by the flickering light of a bulb on the brink of dying off.

The secret room built into a bookcase that lined the entire hallway, housed his private Potions laboratory. It was one of the few things he was thankful of his mother for. She was the one who had built it, and gifted it to him upon his return from Hogwarts in first year. She had no use for it anymore, since she spent her days locked in her room weeping for Merlin knew what. Severus had stopped caring years ago.

"Severus Snape, come here!" the same voice came from downstairs, a familiar slur to the words.

Trudging downstairs, using the Occlumency he had begun to learn, Snape masked the hatred behind his features.

"Boy!" there was a clear tone of anger and impatience behind the man's words now.

Severus turned through a doorway into the small living area of his home in Spinner's End. It reeked of smoke, a smell even the strongest of cleaning spells couldn't clean out entirely. On a small recliner, made of cheap fabric that had been falling apart for the better part of ten years, sat a man who looked so much like his son. A long curtain of greasy black hair shrouded his features, but a prominent hooked nose still managed to peak through.

The man was sickly, pale, and clearly affected by some sort of major health concern. Severus hoped that it was more than just one, but he would never ask. The man was shrouded in a thick stench of body odour, having not bathed in an appropriate amount of time. But the one scent that overrode them all, was the unmistakeable smell of alcohol.

It was a smell Severus Snape had come to hate more than anything else in the world. Only one thing would ever be associated with alcohol in his mind, and that was his father, Tobias Snape.

A father only in name. He had never been a father. He had never been much of anything, other than source of constant misery throughout his life. He was the epitome of a muggle: cruel, weak, filthy, stupid, and inferior to wizards in every way possible. He couldn't look at Tobias without bile rising in his throat.

"Come here Severus," tendrils of alcohol crawled their way up his nose.

Snape did not move.

"I said come her dammit!" the man snapped, clearly intoxicated.

Snape took a single step.

"Do you know where my medicine is?" his voice came out as a wheeze.

Snape didn't answer.

"I said, do you know where my meds are?! I always have them right here beside me," the sickly man's hand fumbled around the coffee table beside him. He picked up an empty pack of cigarettes with a noticeable shake in his hand, before tossing them aside and knocking over a half-eaten package of crisps. "I need my medicine, Severus, have you seen it? Have you seen it… please?" the man's voice cracked in desperation.

Snape chose to remain silent. He had no pity for the man before him. He could find his own damn medicine if he wanted to.

"Answer me boy!"

 _Smack_

Severus' head snapped to the side, his greasy black curtains flying in a whirl, as a large red handprint slowly materialized on his cheek. Moisture dripped from his face, but he didn't so much as make a sound. He wouldn't give Tobias the satisfaction, despite the strength behind the blow.

"I don't know, Tobias."

 _Smack_

He was hit again. Harder this time. For such a frail man, he packed quite the punch.

"I haven't seen them in days, perhaps mother has them. I will go ask her if she's seen them… with your permission of course," he bowed slightly in mockery.

Tobias didn't notice, his eyes filled with pain as he stared off somewhere in the distance. "Yes, yes, go get her. She must have moved them."

With a dramatic whirl, Severus Snape turned to leave the room.

As he reached the door way, he was stopped by the sound of his father's voice. It was weak, having used most of his limited strength moments before. "Thank you, Severus. You're a good boy… a good boy."

Severus paused for half a second, his body raging within, but undetectable on the outside. Only a slight tightening of the jaw and a twitch in his figure gave him away.

Before he knew it, he was outside, wand outstretched, and calling the purple monstrosity people like him utilized if they wanted to go anywhere in the magical world. He paid his fair, and squished himself between a dirty old hag who stank of flesh and a wizard who looked as if he had indulged in one too many pain relief potions with his tea that morning.

It was a nauseating trip as always, lurching, screeching, and barreling its way past unassuming muggles. It was an ingenious invention, Severus had to give credit where it was due, but it was a shame the type of clientele it attracted.

He was the first off the bus when they arrived at his destination, his robes billowing behind him as he stepped into the Leaky Cauldron. He hadn't taken into account the time of day when he set off for his unplanned trip. The pub was bustling with patrons from all corners of the magical world, wizards, witches, and creatures a like.

It was exceptionally hot inside, to the point that it made Severus uncomfortable. He could hardly hear himself think over the din of the bar. It was an unpleasant experience for someone who preferred utter silence.

Three taps of his wand, and he was strolling through Diagon Alley. However, it wasn't the main stretch of the shopping district he was interested in.

There was a stark contrast between the suffocating heat of the pub and the sharp bite of the cool winter air. His breath fogged in front of him as he snaked his way through the crowds. Severus kept his gaze down as he dodged past a particularly obnoxious group of people ogling whatever new broom and just come out.

Quality Quidditch Supplies was his least favorite store on the main strip of the alley. It was a hub for all the mudbloods new to the wizarding world, crying out in shock that a broom was capable of flight. Such simple minded fools. Although... simple things amuse simple minds, he supposed. Perhaps that was why Potter and Black loved the store so much.

In a small opening between a store that exclusively sold pumpkins and another which sold high quality goblets and other dining utensils, Severus slipped through and travelled down a narrow pathway.

There were a number of these paths connecting the main streets that comprised Diagon Alley, the district. They were mainly used by shop owners to discreetly restock their wares without having to bring in new deliveries from the front entrance. However, others used the hidden paths for less legal reasons. Prostitution, ingredient and creature smuggling, and the trade of dark artifacts were a common affair in these parts. It was a risky business, with the Aurors frequently patrolling these byways, but effective if discrete enough.

He was approaching a sharp curve in the path, where Lucius would arrange a drop off of ingredients whenever he requested. The package usually came in the form of a ratty old bag, magically expanded inside to hold its contents. It was a non-descript item, and not uncommon in these side routes. People didn't tend to vanish other people's garbage, so that wasn't an issue either.

There wasn't anything there today, which came as no surprise to Severus, as he hadn't sent out a request since his last pick up. He hadn't come here today for that anyways. He had taken the path today, because of where it deposited him.

Stepping out of the shadows and around an old stack of empty crates, partially hiding the exit of the path, Severus found himself in front of Borgin and Burkes.

The door creaked and a chime rang, announcing his entry. He figured he had walked through some sort of detection ward. Looking around, he appreciated how the décor of the store matched the nature of what it sold inside.

The antique store, as it liked to be referred to, smelt of rotting wood. There was a sinister air about the place, darkness swirled and shadows danced, enticing visitors to exam the artifacts put out on display. A thick layer of dust coated every surface of the store, but it looked to be done intentionally in the effort to emphasize the 'antique' nature of what was sold inside.

He stalked the room eyeing pieces of cursed jewelry, robes that would strangle the owner when put on, and what looked to be muggle torture devices. There was even a display case filled with human bones, mostly adult, but some small enough to belong to a child.

An antique shop it may be in name, but anyone who ever stepped foot in the store knew what its true nature was.

Tearing his eyes away from a collection of bone white masks, Snape nearly collided with a fat old man who had materialized out of nowhere.

"Severus Snape?" the man asked in a croaking voice that wouldn't' have been out of place on a toad.

"Yes." He replied, staring at the man's bulbous nose.

"You back for more books on potions then?" it was more of a statement than a question.

"Upon my last visit, I was informed you were in the process of a deal that would see a rare collection of tomes come under your possession. I would like to enquire about them," he answered, stepping towards the main counter.

Borgin, he was fairly sure, eyed him for a moment, "We have them in our possession. I can bring them out if you would like," he finally answered.

He gave the man a curt nod, watching him disappear to the back of the store.

It was only a few moments before Borgin came hobbling back into the room holding a tome made of what looked to be the hide of a centaur.

"It came with a shipment of curious items from the home of a recently murdered aristocrat. Burke managed to acquire it on his trip to Bulgaria," he gently passed over the item of interest.

Running his finger through the coarse hair, he could tell it was genuine. If the covering of the tome was to go by, the value of its contents would be priceless. Centaurs were protected creatures by the ICW, punishable by death for hunting them. Owning a book like this would be enough for lifetime imprisonment in Azkaban.

 _Herbs, Draughts, and Poisons of Ancient Tsars and Russian Folklore_

"One of a kind I am told. Written by an exiled warlock who longed for home…" Borgin's rough voice supplied.

Severus could tell it was a rare tome, but he wasn't foolish enough to believe it was one of a kind. He had dealt with Borgin and Burke in the past, as had many of his friends, and they had come to know that most of what left their mouths was a lie. They were dishonest people, dealing in a dishonest business. If they could get away with scamming a customer, they would do it in a heartbeat. They would hesitate when dealing with an important lord like Malfoy or Lestrange, but with him they would have no reservations.

Skimming through the thick parchment bound within, Snape came to the conclusion that this was something he wanted. However, not from Borgin and Burke.

It had become somewhat of a routine for Severus to come to Borgin and Burkes and check out any interesting merchandise, before inquiring with Regulus to see if the same item could be found in the Black Library.

"An interesting read to be sure… I will return on a later date," Severus pushed the tome back to Borgin. It was fascinating, he very much hoped that Regulus could find a copy he could loan.

"Understandable…" Borgin trailed off, his veiny hands picking it back up, "I hope to see you then. Remember it is one of a kind, I'm not sure how long I can hold it. Return quickly," Borgin clearly wasn't holding his breath on Snape's return, not bothering to hide the tinge of disappointment and anger in his voice.

It was a quick walk out of Knockturn Alley, having accomplished the one thing he wanted to do on this spontaneous visit. Lights on the sides of stores were coming to life, as the sun began its descent. There were fewer people on the streets of Diagon Alley, likely having gone home for supper.

A chill ran down Severus' spine, it had gotten noticeably colder with the disappearance of the sun. His stomach was grumbling, sending an audible complaint at the fact he hadn't eaten that day.

A few spare sickles jingled in his pocket. He figured it wouldn't hurt to pick up something to eat at the Leaky Cauldron. He doubted his mother had cooked anything, and if she had, Tobias would have eaten it all by now. A sick man he was, but his appetite remained the same.

Laying down a handful of sickles, he ordered a glass of water and a pork roast, as he took a seat at the corner of the bar. The pub was busier than it was earlier that evening, and it was notably noisier as well. The back of his head thrummed as a headache was beginning to develop, but emptiness of his stomach was more important.

A loud laugh caught his attention, piercing through the veil of noise that settled over the pub. He knew that laugh. Searching the establishment, his eyes were immediately drawn to a mess of auburn hair.

 _Lily._

He admired her from a distance. Listening to the laugh he yearned to own.

His eyes left her for just a moment, and he immediately wished they hadn't.

Rage rushed through his veins, a red haze of hatred filled his vision, as he spotted Lily laughing with James Potter. Not just _laughing_ , but _leaning_ on him and _clutching_ him as she tried to catch her breath over something he said.

Why? Why was she there with Potter?

The arrogant fucking prick! She was his, not Potter's!

Looking to his left, he knew why she was there. It was Peverell. Peverell was sitting there with Longbottom, Fawley, and McKinnon. Even pathetic Pettigrew, and the damned creature Lupin were there. The Gryffindor's were all there having a great time, laughing without a care in the world, like they were the only ones who mattered.

Black wasn't there, he noticed. Probably fucking some muggle like the blood traitor he is, at least according to Regulus.

Lily's laugh sang out again, but instead of the euphoric pleasure it usually brought him, it provided only pain. It was like a banshee was screaming directly in his ear, he couldn't bear to listen to it. His head was throbbing in agony.

Potter's arms looped around her waist to catch her, as she nearly fell from her seat in hysterics.

He couldn't bear to look any longer, turning his head back to the others.

It was the worst mistake he could have made.

Lily's eyes on Potter's face stared right back at him. Those torturous green orbs were shining with so much joy, and Potter's damn smirk adorned his face.

Severus slammed his stool backwards, knocking over an elderly wizard carrying a pint, spilling his drink onto a table occupied by goblins. Shouts of protest, and swears were thrown his way, but he paid them no mind. He swiped the meal that had just been placed in front of him onto the floor, the plate and glass shattering on impact.

He pushed his way through the crowded bar, desperate to escape. A small blonde girl stepped into his path, and was sent stumbling to the floor as he marched through her. Her father yelling at him to stop, stuck in half a mind between chasing after him and consoling his now crying daughter. He chose his daughter.

He wasn't sure how, but Severus had somehow managed to exit the Leaky Cauldron, call the Knight Bus, and make his way home. His mind was screaming as he burst through the front door, not caring who he disturbed.

Tears were falling from his eyes as he entered his potions lab, and rushed to open a locked cabinet. His throat was burning, and he searched for the one thing he took solace in when this hellfire erupted within him. It didn't help... it never did. It smelt of Tobias, but he didn't care. He would wake up hating himself, but that was tomorrow's problem. It was the only other thing he had inherited from his father other than his looks.

He ignited the flames underneath his cauldron, and opened his journal. Droplets of liquid stained the page. Of what, he didn't want to know.

He was the artist again, and nothing existed outside of him and his work.

As his mind focused in on his work, he remembered that he never asked his mother about his father's medication. He laughed to himself at the thought, knowing that it wouldn't have mattered if he did or not.

He had thrown them out days ago.

 **AN**

 **I'm back with a short update today. I promise the chapter lengths will go back up in future updates, but I have been sitting on this** **excerpt for a little while and felt that I should just get it out already. I know it's been a while since the last update for the story, but I promise that I haven't given up on it, I have just been plotting out the direction in which the story will go. I have big plans for this, and I can't wait for you all to experience it.**

 **I mixed things up in this chapter with a POV from Snape. Probably the most controversial figure in the Harry Potter series. I had a lot of fun playing with his character. I hope you all liked his portrayal.** **I would like to say that the way I portray Snape in this, is not my opinion on what young Snape would have been like. We don't know what he really was like in Hogwarts, but I feel that the way I've built him up will make an interesting character to develop in this story (a dark and damaged person living in a fucked up situation).**

 **I updated my other story ABL just over a week ago, and the next update for it will be in a few days. So go check it out!**

 **I can't give an honest approximation for the next update to this, but I promise it will be sooner rather than later.**

 **Thank you for reading, and please feel free to leave reviews. They are much appreciated, and help me grow as a writer and improve my stories. Let me know your thoughts on the way I portrayed Snape. Let me know your thoughts on what you think young Snape would have been like. Comments, suggestions, guesses as to what is going to happen next, anything at all.**

 **Until next time.**


	19. Chapter 19

Hello everyone who has been following this story.

Just over a year ago, after really getting back into the Harry Potter universe and reading a lot of fan fiction, I got the itch to try it for myself. I hadn't attempted creative writing since I was in elementary school, and thought 'What the hell I'll give it a go'. I tried it, I loved it, and I wanted to keep doing. I did it mostly for my own enjoyment, and I didn't think that my first story would grow to be anything. Surprisingly people seemed to really enjoy it, and at this moment in time, it has over 1,000 followers and nearly 900 favourites. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

Now, we get into the bad news, which I'm sure many of you have guessed by this point. This story, as of now, has been put on long term hiatus. I know some of you really enjoyed it, and I apologize, because I know as a fellow reader of fan fiction just how much it sucks when this happens.

There are many reasons for this, and I would like to list them, because I feel I owe you that:

1) Time is something that I don't have a lot of. I lead a very busy life, being a full-time student at uni, volunteering, actively playing sports, trying to keep a normal social life, etc. And trying to fit writing in amongst all that is increasingly difficult. Writing perhaps is my favourite thing to do, but that doesn't mean I have the time to do it as much as I would like to. I don't have the time to balance INGAE with my other story, which leads me into my second point.

2) I started my other story ABL in January, because I had an idea that just wouldn't leave me alone until I put it down on paper. Very quickly, I realized that the quality of writing in ABL was miles ahead than INGAE. Even looking at ABL now, the first chapters are at a much lower standard than my most recent updates. ABL very quickly took over as my first priority when writing, because I felt just that much more more invested in it, and was enjoying it a lot more. And when writing, your best work comes out when you enjoy what you're doing, and not because you're forced to do it.

3) I feel as if I have outgrown INGAE. Looking back at this story, there is so much I want to change that I can't see a way for myself to go forward. There are parts I genuinely enjoy about it, and I planned a lot of cool things for the future, but I feel they would be a waste if I put them to use here. As a writer, I've grown far beyond what is found in this story.

The reason this has been put on long-term hiatus rather than being abandoned, is because there is a chance that once I finished ABL I might come back and re-write the story. It would still be INGAE, but a much more refined, and overall better written and better thought out version. I'm not saying this with 100% certainty, I'm only saying there is a likelihood of it occurring at some point. At the moment, I just don't have any material for this story and I see no reason for myself to continue with it when I see it as such a mess.

If you have any questions about how the story was likely to end up, feel free to PM me. And if you enjoy my writing, and haven't done so already, check out my other story ABL.

Thank you.


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